Jewish settler Amnon Trabelsi carefully planted pepper seedlings in his Gaza Strip greenhouse today in a show of defiance at the plan to remove him and his farm before the crop can ripen.
Agriculture has been the mainstay of the Gaza settlers, who are to be removed from mid-August under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to pull settlers from the occupied territory as a way of "disengaging" from conflict with the Palestinians.
"Rockets have fallen and we have lived under the shadow of sniper fire. I believe we will remain here," said Trabelsi, joined by hundreds of supporters for the planting, which was loaded with the symbolism of resistance. "In three months, we will harvest the peppers," said Trabelsi (44) who moved to the Gadid settlement 12 years ago.
Israel intends to end its 38-year-old occupation of the Gaza Strip well before that, giving up 21 settlements there by mid-September as well as four of 120 in the West Bank.
Polls show most Israelis support the initiative and Washington sees it as a step to peacemaking. Some of the 8,500 settlers in Gaza are preparing to take their official compensation and go.
A few of the long greenhouses, exporting fruit and organic vegetables to Europe, have been taken down already. But most of the settlers have vowed to resist a plan they say betrays a biblical birthright and rewards a Palestinian uprising.
The looming pullout is already making life tougher for those farmers staying put, however, as banks turn down loans to help with planting and expansion. "Banks don't see the farmers as friends any more. But the people of Israel are the bank now," said Hanan Porat, who is raising funds to help farmers. He said Israelis had already contributed 8 million shekels ($1.7 million).
"Life will go on." Palestinians, packed in a densely populated portion of the territory that is home to 1.3 million, welcome Israel's withdrawal from Gaza.