Israel has banned its citizens from moving into four Jewish settlements in the northern West Bank in a bid to prevent more opponents of a planned pullout from flocking to the area as new settlers.
The order, 'prohibiting the relocation of Israeli citizens into the four West Bank communities', was issued by the military.
This followed media reports that hundreds of ultranationalists were planning to flock to the settlements in the Gaza Strip and West Bank to block the pullout this summer.
Earlier, Israel's Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz, said his country will begin handing over security control of a second West Bank city to the Palestinians tomorrow.
Officers from the two sides will meet today to finalise the withdrawal of troops from the city of Tulkarem.
The city is just across the so-called Green Line divide between Israel and the West Bank and is behind the security barrier Israel is building in the occupied territory.
Israel has already handed over control of Jericho as part of an agreement made last month at a peace summit in Egypt.
Under the agreement, Israel is also due to transfer Ramallah, Bethlehem and Qalqilya to Palestinian control.
