Israeli forces set out Wednesday to evacuate two makeshift settlement outposts in the West Bank, an incremental move against a major obstacle to Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Police and army forces arrived at the first outpost, Harchivi, near the Palestinian town of Nablus, and the five people there fled at the sight of the forces, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said. No arrests were made. At the second outpost, Shvut Ami, also near Nablus, around 20 teenage protesters gathered at the scene before forces arrived, laying down barbed wire and rocks on the road, the Associated Press reported. Israel promised under a 2003 peace plan to evacuate about two dozen outposts. As part of the renewal of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, U.S. President George W. Bush pressed Israel last week to fulfill its commitment. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said earlier this week that the outposts' continued presence was a «disgrace,» but it was not clear if the government actually planned to make any significant move against them soon. Little action has been taken since he took power two years ago.
