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15 Palestinians Die As Israelis Raid Camp
Updates yesterday's article...An Israeli crackdown on Palestinian militants erupted into the bloodiest day of fighting in the Gaza Strip in 16 months. Fifteen Palestinians died in the violence and more than 50 were wounded. Islamic Hamas responded Wednesday with an ominous vow of retaliation, Dire Revenge(tm)! urging all of its cells throughout Gaza and the West Bank to attack. Similar calls in the past have been followed within days - sometimes hours - by suicide bombings in Israel. In short - continue as normal. The stepped-up violence was linked by some to Prime Minister Ariel Sharonâs proposals for a unilateral pullout from most of Gaza. With many Israelis, including the militaryâs intelligence chief, concerned such a move might be viewed by Palestinians as a sign of weakness, analysts warned that more military action in the territory could lie ahead... "That is presumably what we saw today and what we will see more of," said Israeli analyst Yossi Alpher. The fiercest fighting took place in the Shajaiyeh neighborhood of Gaza City. Twelve militants, including the son of a prominent Palestinian leader and a senior Hamas activist, were killed and more than 40 were wounded, Palestinian doctors said. Good shooting. In a separate raid in the Rafah refugee camp along the Gaza-Egypt border, troops killed three Palestinians, including a militant, as they searched for tunnels used for arms smuggling. The forces demolished three houses and razed citrus and olive groves. The army said it had entered the Gaza City neighborhood to search for militants who fired rockets at nearby Jewish settlements. It said the fighting broke out after militants fired missiles at Israeli tanks. Among the dead were Mohammed Hilles, 18, the son of Ahmed Hilles, the top leader of Yasser Arafatâs Fatah faction in Gaza, and senior Hamas activist Hani Abu Skhaila. The fighting was the deadliest in Gaza since 19 Palestinians were killed in clashes in Khan Younis on Oct. 7, 2002. Later Wednesday, thousands of people marched in funeral processions for some of the militants. Masked men in military-style uniforms carried bodies on stretchers, while others Did the bodies walk home afterwards like before? After the fighting died down, four small rockets were fired into Israel, causing no injuries or damage, Bad shots all. the army said. Later, militants fired a mortar at a Jewish settlement in Gaza, badly damaging a house and lightly injuring a settler. The groupâs militant wing issued a statement calling on all its cells in the West Bank, Gaza and Jerusalem to carry out "huge martyrdom operations ... everywhere in Palestine," Not a tremor on the suprise meter here... referring to suicide bombings in the West Bank, Gaza and Israel. Hamas leader Abdel Aziz Rantissi posted a statement on the groupâs Web site promising "astounding retaliation." Dire Revenge! Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said the Gaza incursion endangered efforts to revive long-
Posted by: CrazyFool 2004-02-12 |
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