Sharon Endorses Palestinian State

Says Israel Won't Rule Over Them; Also, Fears Of Al Qaeda In Gaza

(CBS/AP) 
"The Palestinian Authority doesn't welcome them and the Islamic movements, like Hamas and Islamic Jihad, have condemned their attacks," Abu Khoussa said.

There were some signs Thursday that security forces were beginning to stem the free flow of people across the border, with Egyptian troops allowing Palestinians to re-enter Gaza but often preventing them from crossing into Egypt. At one point, Palestinian police fired into the air to prevent people from crossing into Egypt, the Haaretz daily reported.

However, in other places Palestinian police and Egyptian troops stood by idly as people crossed over.

Men with one-liter barrels climbed on ladders over a border fence to buy cheap gasoline and diesel fuel in Egypt in full view of two Egyptian policemen, who did nothing.

In another development Thursday, the Israeli Supreme Court upheld the legality of Israel's West Bank security barrier, rejecting a world court ruling that the barrier violates Palestinian rights and should be torn down.

The Israeli court ruled that the government could extend the security barrier to include some West Bank settlements, saying the it is necessary to protect the lives of Israeli citizens from Palestinian suicide bombers. The ruling effectively rejects a decision by the World Court in the Hague, which said that the barrier is illegal and must be torn down. It's a victory for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon who has vowed to hold on to big West Bank settlement blocs, reports Berger.

The court also ordered the government to reroute a section of the barrier, saying it caused undue Palestinian hardship.