Within a week, Israeli forces will be out of all West Bank cities and towns except Bethlehem and Ramallah, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Monday in an exclusive interview with CNN. "Altogether, we are on our way out," Sharon said.
Sharon has previously said Israeli troops would withdraw after Israeli forces root out what he called the "terrorist infrastructure." The Palestinians have called the campaign an Israeli reoccupation of the West Bank.
Sharon said Israel and the United States have agreed on what must happen in resolving the standoff at the Church of the Nativity - and that the solution would require having those deemed connected with "terrorist acts" tried in Israel or deported.
"They must leave their weapons behind. They have to come (out) They will be identified," he said.
In the interview, Sharon said Israel has nothing to hide in the Jenin refugee camp, where Palestinians claim Israeli forces killed hundreds of civilians. Israeli officials have denied that, but the Israeli military has refused to allow Western reporters into the camp. (Albawaba.com)
