9 Palestinians Killed in Israeli Strikes

12/01/2003| IslamWeb

At least nine Palestinians and one Israeli are reported to have been killed in a day of widespread violence in the Palestinian territories and Israel. The incidents include an Israeli helicopter gunship attack that Palestinians say mistakenly killed two teenagers. Palestinian resistance men have also tried infiltrating into Israel from across the border with Egypt, reports say.

Some 2,800 people have died since the Palestinian uprising began in September, 2000.

Sunday's fighting comes amid bitter recriminations between both sides.

The main incidents have been:

·Two Palestinian resistance men killed an Israeli in the village of Moshav Gadish, close to the West Bank, before                   being shot dead themselves by security forces.

·Helicopter gunships target Hamas extremists in the town of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip - but Palestinians say                   the targets were missed and two teenage boys were killed

·Two Palestinian resistance men are killed after trying to cross into Israel's Negev desert from Egypt, the Israelis                   say.

·Hamas fire three rockets at the southern Israeli town of Sderot, injuring one person .

·A Palestinian is killed after Israeli occupation troops enter the town of Beit Hanoun in the north of Gaza Strip .

·A Palestinian man is shot dead by Israeli troops in the West Bank town of Hebron.

·Overnight, dozens of Israeli tanks, backed by helicopter gunships move into Khan Younis in an operation in                    which one Palestinian dies .

Escaping accusations

Senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat accused Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of using the army to turn attention away from his internal political problems.

"These operations were an attempt by the Israeli Government to escape corruption accusations and influence the Israeli electoral campaign by perpetrating more killings, destruction and state terrorism in the territories," Mr Erekat told the AFP news agency.

On Saturday, the Palestinian cabinet issued a statement calling for an end to all attacks on Israeli citizens.

Analysts say any respite in resistance bombings could improve the election chances of opposition Labour candidate Amram Mitzna, who has pledged to reopen talks on a Palestinian state.

Mr Sharon was dismissive of the statement on Sunday.

"For the president of the Palestinian Authority, the murder of Israelis is a permanent goal coupled with political considerations," Sharon told the Israeli cabinet, reports say.

"In his opinion, assassinations of Israelis before an electoral period are legitimate, but should be stopped in the run-up and be resumed after the vote."

More than 2,060 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the Palestinian uprising.

The Israeli death toll is more than 720.

PHOTO CAPTION

An Israeli policeman carries the remains of a rocket that landed in an open field Sunday Jan. 12, 2003 in the southern Israel town of Sderot. According to the army Palestinian activists fired this one and two more short-range rockets late Sunday. Also late Sunday Israeli occupation troops raided a Gaza Strip  town and a refugee camp killing a resistance man and an apparent bystander and destroying several metal workshops the army said were used for making weapons (AP Photo/Gadi Kabalo)