Palestinians Killed after Border Ambush
24/07/2005| IslamWeb
Two Palestinians have been killed after the deadly shooting of an Israeli couple in the Gaza Strip overnight.
One of the Palestinians was shot dead by guards protecting Israeli settlements, while the other was killed by soldiers during a search operation, Israeli military sources said.
Earlier, two Palestinians opened fire near the Kissufim checkpoint between the Gaza Strip and Israeli territory, targeting a convoy of cars carrying Israeli civilians visiting the Gaza settlements which are due to be closed down next month.
An Israeli couple from Jerusalem was killed and five other Israelis were injured by gunfire.
Two Palestinian groups, Islamic Jihad and al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, jointly claimed responsibility for the attack on the Israelis.
The military earlier said its forces in the area clashed with Palestinians, shot dead one of the attackers and carried out raids in the area.
Aljazeera's correspondent in Gaza, Wail Dahduh, said Israel shut down the electricity in the Khan Yunus area after the killings and its helicopters were hovering over the refugee camp.
Alleged bombers caught
Meanwhile, the Israeli military said it had arrested an alleged bomber, with a 5-kg explosive belt, who infiltrated Israel from the Gaza Strip.
The 18-year-old Palestinian was identified as Jihad Shahada, from the Jabalya Palestinian refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip.
Israeli interrogators said he planned to blow himself up in the Tel Aviv area.
A second man was later arrested in the town of Jaffa, adjacent to Tel Aviv, the military said.
Accused of fabrication
The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades issued a statement saying this was another Israeli fabrication and denied reports that the suspect was a member of the movement.
A spokesman for the Palestinian resistance group in Gaza said: "This man is not a member of al-Aqsa Brigades and al-Aqsa is not involved in this fabricated Israeli story," said the spokesman, identifying himself as Abu Ahmad.
Saturday's incidents took place as US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice left the region after a three-day visit aimed at shoring up a fragile truce.
During her visit, Rice separately met Israeli and Palestinian leaders over three days - the third time that has happened since she took over at the State Department in January.
Rice came to the region in a hastily arranged trip to try and rescue the shaky Middle East truce amid an escalation of violence, determined that Israel's mid-August "disengagement" from the Gaza Strip go ahead as planned.
PHOTO CAPTION