BETHLEHEM, West Bank (Islamweb & News Agencies) - Israel's army held on to positions in and around six Palestinian West Bank cities Sunday in its broadest offensive in a year of uprising agaisnt Israeli occupation sparking fresh fighting in which two more Palestinians were killed.
A Palestinian civilian and a police officer were killed and at least six others were hurt in a gun battle between Israeli occupation troops and Palestinians in Bethlehem, where the occupation army positioned itself some 700 yards inside the city.
Two Palestinians were wounded in fighting that erupted north of Qalqilya, a West Bank city that Israeli occupation forces encircled a day earlier. Saturday, eight Palestinians were killed in fierce battles throughout the West Bank. (Read photo caption below)
Israeli occupation authorities claimed that Israel had no intention of destroying the Palestinian Authority.
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat said Saturday that Israel wanted to ``escalate militarily and it is pursuing this plan, in direct challenge to all international efforts to calm the situation and to revive the peace process.''
Israel said its incursions were to apprehend Palestinian militants planning attacks on Israelis.
The raids followed the assassination Wednesday of ultra-nationalist cabinet minister Rehavam Zeevi, the first ever killing of an Israeli minister by Palestinians.
Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo urged Palestinians to resist the ``invaders.''
Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat told BBC television: ``The end game which (Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is now pursuing is to destroy the Palestinian Authority and to destroy the peace process.''
PHOTO CAPTION:
Palestinians in Bethlehem en route to the funeral of militant Atif Abayyat