In what has become a familiar scene this week, Israeli troops pushed through burning barricades, dragging screaming protesters from a settlement synagogue on Friday, in an assault on one of the last pockets of resistance to evacuation from the Gaza Strip.Diehard Jewish settlers took to the rooftops in the tiny Gadid enclave shouting ‘‘Nazis’’, as security forces swept in, hours after clearing Gaza’s main anti-pullout strongholds before breaking the back of the opposition to ending 38 years of occupation.Buoyed by the latest poll confirming support in Israel for the removal of the settlements, the military suspended settlement evacuation for Saturday, the Jewish day of rest.With 17 of Gaza’s 21 enclaves clear of settlers, troops plan to begin evacuating two small West Bank settlements on Tuesday in a 24-hour operation, a security source said. Sanur and Homesh, built on territory where many religious Jews feel an even closer Biblical bond than in Gaza, are seen as potential flashpoints because of an influx of Rightist Israelis from the most radical West Bank settlements.Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, addressing a cheering crowd in the southern Gaza Strip, called the first evacuation of settlements from land Palestinians want for a state, a time of “great joy”.‘‘This pullout was the result of the sacrifices, patience and wisdom of our people,’’ he said. ‘‘The more important step after the withdrawal will be how we protect, rebuild. and administer this land, so we can set an example for the world.’’ —Reuters
