Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat called yesterday on the international community to put an end to "Israeli crimes" in the Gaza Strip, where 28 Palestinians were killed in two days. "We call on the entire world to take immediate action, condemn and put an end to these Israeli crimes perpetrated against our people, children, women, institutions, our infrastructure and holy sites," Arafat was quoted as saying by the official WAFA news agency. "After the Zeitun neighbourhood, they are committing crimes in Rafah. Tens of martyrs and wounded fell while the infrastructure and the people's belongings suffered extensive destruction," he added. In southern Gaza, Israeli troops killed 12 Palestinians yesterday after back-to-back ambushes claimed the lives of 11 of its soldiers in the worst blow to the Middle East's mightiest army in two years. The new spiral of violence intensified debate between proponents and opponents of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to evacuate settlers from Gaza, now stalled by rightist hard-liners in his own Likud party. Witnesses said 11 Palestinians, four of them fighters, were killed in helicopter missile strikes in Rafah refugee camp, near the area where the fighters blew up an explosives-packed troop carrier on Wednesday. Five soldiers in the vehicle were killed. "A helicopter fired missiles at a group of armed fighters in two separate incidents at the same spot," an Israeli military source said. Israeli troops, combing the area for the soldiers' remains, later shot dead a 19-year-old Palestinian during a push into Rafah, where 10 homes were demolished witnesses and medics said. Another helicopter missile strike in late afternoon wounded at least three people on the edge of the camp, witnesses said. On Tuesday, six Israeli troops died when their armoured vehicle struck a landmine during a raid in Gaza City's Zeitoun neighbourhood. Militants grabbed the soldiers' body parts, which were scattered over a wide area. In Brussels, the European Commission decided to send 33 million US dollar in humanitarian aid to impoverished Palestinians in light of the upsurge in violence. The money would provide food aid, water sanitation and improved ambulance services. Polls show most Israelis see Gaza as a liability that should be abandoned. Sharon vows to pursue his plan despite its defeat in a May 2 Likud vote that reflected fears Palestinian militants would seize on a unilateral pullout as a victory. In Malaysian city of Putrajaya, Non-aligned states urged immediate UN intervention to halt bloodshed between Palestinians and Israelis and told the US to adopt a neutral stance to mediate in the troubled region. The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), at an ad hoc meeting also proposed sending a team to meet Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and leaders of the US, European Union and Russia to lobby for peace. In a closing statement, NAM ministers said the United Nations should authorise an international presence and establish a UN peace keeping mission in the occupied Palestinian territory. **PHOTO CAPTION*** A Palestinian boy sits in the rubble of a demolished house in the West Bank town of Ramallah, Friday, May 14, 2004. (AP)