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Israeli tanks, armoured carriers and helicopter gunships have taken control of towns in the West Bank in a hardening of military tactics. The move follows an Israeli cabinet decision to seize and hold on to parts of the West Bank "as long as terror continues". It is a response to Tuesday's suicide bomb attack in Jerusalem that left 19 Israelis, several of them children, dead - the worst attack in the city for six years. Palestinian officials have denounced the new Israeli policy and said it is likely to provoke more violence. 'Murderous acts' Israeli forces rolled into the West Bank towns of Jenin, Qalqilya and Nablus on Wednesday morning. Witnesses say clashes broke out in the Jenin refugee camp, the focus of a controversial Israeli operation in April. One report describes Israeli troops in Jenin bringing in mobile homes on the back of trucks - apparently preparing for an extended stay. The army later withdrew from Nablus after arresting a number of suspected militants. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has made it clear Israel may seize more towns. "Additional acts of terror will lead to the taking of additional areas," a statement issued by his office early on Wednesday said. The new policy signals "a change in the way Israel responds to murderous acts," it said. Before Tuesday's suicide attack, Israel had talked about short-term operations to arrest wanted militants and confiscate weapons. An Israeli security official said the new policy would essentially amount to bigger and longer incursions. He said that to fully reoccupy Palestinian towns, the army would have to call up reservists and take on responsibility for civil administration - something it is not yet prepared to do. 'Occupiers and invaders' Palestinians have reacted with fury. "The Israeli decision to reoccupy Palestinian territories and settle inside them represents an open invitation to the Palestinian people and to all Palestinian factions to practise all sorts of resistance against the occupation," Ahmed Abdel-Rahman, an aide to Yasser Arafat, told the Reuters news agency. "Any resistance to this occupation now will be legitimate and accepted by all Palestinians against the occupiers and the invaders of Palestinian sovereign areas," he said. In Ramallah - the West Bank town which is home to Mr Arafat - residents are reported to be stocking up on food and medicines in case the Israeli Army returns. Mr Sharon said on Tuesday that the nail bomb attack on the bus in Jerusalem - which also left 50 people injured - was an argument "stronger than any words" against Palestinian statehood. The militant group Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack and has promised further action. President Bush is expected to outline an American vision for the setting up of a Palestinian state - and possibly a timetable for that to happen - and his spokesman said he would not be put off by the latest "act of terror". Bastions The Israeli army has recently been carrying out regular raids on towns such as Jenin, which are viewed as bastions of militants and future suicide bombers. Those raids followed the withdrawal from Palestinian towns under Operation Defensive Shield, which ran from 29 March to 10 May. At least 1,403 Palestinians and 530 Israelis have been killed since the Palestinian uprising began in September 2000. (Note that attached to this story was a picture of Israeli protestors holding a sign captioned, "EXPEL THE ARAB ENEMY".)
13 responses total.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_2050000/2050414.s tm 'Pride' of suicide attacker's mother By Orla Guerin BBC Middle East correspondent In Gaza, the mother of a Palestinian suicide attacker who killed two Israelis before being shot dead has spoken of her feelings about her son's actions. A video released by Hamas shows a proud mother taking up arms beside her favourite son. [See site for picture.] First a warm embrace, then a loving kiss. Naima al-Obeid was saying goodbye to her 23-year-old Mahmoud, a college student on his way to carry out a suicide attack. "God willing you will succeed," she says. "May every bullet hit its target, and may God give you martyrdom. This is the best day of my life." Mahmoud says: "Thank you for raising me." Naima got her wish. Mahmoud was shot dead attacking the Jewish settlement of Dugit in the Gaza Strip on Saturday. Deaths celebrated Two Israeli soldiers were killed in the ambush. Their deaths are being celebrated near Mahmoud's home. We found crowds coming to the mourning tent - and not just because of him. People here aren't just remembering Mahmoud - they are honouring his mother. She has become a heroine, being talked about on the streets, praised in the local papers. Some Palestinians are taking a great deal of pride in a mother who saw her son go to kill and die without shedding a tear. They are already saying she will inspire other women to do the same. Heaven and hell In her home, in Gaza, she showed me pictures of the son she calls "my heart". She had no sympathy for the dead Israelis, no regrets over the loss of her own son. "Nobody wants their son to be killed. I always wanted him to have a good life. "But our land is occupied by the Israelis. We're sacrificing our sons to get our freedom," she told me. I asked her if it mattered whether her son killed women and children. "The women and children are also Jews," she said, "They're all the same for me. "And I want to tell Jewish mothers - take your children and run from here because you will never be safe. We believe our sons go to heaven when they are martyred. When your sons die they go to hell." Naima is surrounded by well-wishers, no one asking why she gave her son a licence to kill. She has nine more children, whom, she says, all have a duty to fight the Israeli occupation.
The whole concept of suicide bomber as martyr is terrifically warped. I wonder what effects it will have on the cultural development of the Palestinians in generations to come..
hmm..... Hamas and Islamic Jihad are both islamic fundimentalist groups. I can't see Arafat wanting these groups to take power, if/when Palastine becomes a recognized state. I'm guessing Arafat is quite secular, considering his wife is a christian. I'm sure Hamas doesn't think favorable of that. So you gotta wonder if there's some truth to what the P.A has been saying all along...by keeping Arafat couped up and taking control of the west bank, his hands are kinda tied from stoping the suicide bombings. Another thing... notice there has been very few mention of Hezbollah during this latest Intifada? I'm guessing this is a direct result of Israel pulling out of Lebanon. You gotta wonders, by Israel laying siege to the westbank, is Ariel Sharron shooting himself in the foot?
> by keeping Arafat couped up and taking control of the west bank, his > hands are kinda tied from stoping the suicide bombings. What prevented Arafat from attempting to prevent suicide bombings and the THOUSANDS of other terror attacks prior to Israel's operation defensive wall in April? While you are right that Hamas and Islamic Jihad are Muslim organizations which are not controlled by Arafat, more than half of the terrorist attacks (including yesterday's suicide bombing in Jerusalem) have been carried out by factions loyal to Arafat, militias within his own Fatah party such as the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, Force 17 and Tanzim. > there has been very few mention of Hezbollah during this latest Intifada? Not exactly. Hezbollah has been rather active along the Lebanese border, but under pressure from the US (via Syria and Lebanon) to curtail its activities. What further confounds these groups in Lebanon is a security fence which runs across Israel's northern border. (The pretext for Hezbollah's on-going aggression is that Israel still "occupies" Shaba Farms, an area that prior to 1967 was in Syria -- as attested to by Lebanese text- books [ABC News] and the UN's certification of Israel's withdrawal.) The leading theory is that Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Lebanon encouraged the intifadah because it was seen to demonstrate that terrorism is effective. (As the regional saying goes: if you give a pig a finger, he'll want your entire hand.)
Following yesterday's deadly suicide bombing of a bus by Hamas, Arafat's Fatah
Party's Al Aqsa Brigades was busy murdering innocent civilians today:
19:54 Magen David Adom: 7 likely killed in blast, 40 hurt, 8 in serious
condition
22:11 Baby and child among those killed in Jerusalem suicide bombing
20:01 Jerusalem suicide bomber arrived in car, sprinted to hitch-hiking post
and blew himself up
20:30 Jerusalem District Police Chief Mickey Levy: 2 border policemen who
tried to stop bomber among the injured
20:33 Hezbollah TV: Fatah movement claims French Hill suicide bombing in
Jerusalem
19:58 White House announces Bush has decided to postpone his key Mideast
policy address
21:13 EU agrees to unblock $17.7 million in aid to Palestinians, but demands
`full transparency` in how it is spent
22:39 Palestinian media: Two Palestinians killed in exchanges of fire with
IDF troops in Qalqilyah
01:31 Attempted infiltration at Kiryat Arba yeshiva by terror cell with
guns, grenades
IDF kills assassin of Hebron observers
An Islamic Jihad activist considered responsible for killing two
members of The International Presence in Hebron (TIPH) force last
March, was shot dead yesterday by Israeli forces at a surprise
checkpoint outside Hebron.
This morning's news:
09:23 Sari Nusseibeh: Number of signatories on petition against suicide
bombings has risen to 200
Is it that hard to find Arabs willing to sign this petition? Is it because
so few support it -- or because they're worried that this list will be used
by Arab death squads as a list of "collaborators" that need to be murdered?
10:06 Jane`s Defense Weekly: Syria planning to manufacture Scud C missiles
with range of 700 kilometers
10:08 Name of fifth victim of French Hill bombing released: Gal Eizenman,
5 years old, from Ma`aleh Adumim
10:14 Avraham Eliyahu Nehmad, 17, injured in Beth Yisrael bombing 4 months
ago, dies of his wounds
10:32 Arafat cancels planned televised speech calling for end to terror
attacks, cites technical reasons
What a creative excuse. Tomorrow he'll probably tell us that his "dogs"
ate his speech notes.
11:14 Ben-Eliezer: We prevent 90 percent of suicide bombers, but remaining
10 percent is exacting heavy toll
11:33 Anti-aircraft shells fired [by Hezbollah] from South Lebanon cause
fire to break out in Galilee town
If these people would drink more beer, they would be a lot happier.
From my experience, both Arabs and Israelis agree that Root Beer tastes
like medicine.
13:59 Abu Kabir forensic institute identifies all seven victims of
Wednesday`s Jerusalem bombing
14:33 Three explosive devices found on border between Lebanon and Israel,
close to Shaba Farms [Hezbollah]
re " #3 (eprom) So you gotta wonder if there's some truth to what the P.A has been saying all along...by keeping Arafat couped up and taking control of the west bank, his hands are kinda tied from stoping (sic) the suicide bombings." I see. As opposed to his prevention of the bombers prior to that, I suppose.
Just curious, but how would one go about stopping a suicide bombing? if I want to kill myself, how can anyone stop me?
Random checks on people to make sure they're not carrying explosives would be one step.
A bullet in the brain would probably stop you.
Angela, you stop the suicide bombers by arresting their handlers, the people who recruit, train, arm and dispatch them. You stop the suicide bombers by shutting down the labratories in which the bombs are made. You shut down the terrorists by patroling your side of the border. You stop these groups by infiltrating them (much easier for Arafat to do than for the US) and finding out about their plans before they happen. You stop suicide murderers by running public service campaigns that speak out against terrorism. By educating children that it is wrong to murder innocents. By preparing a population to accept compromise and peace instead of opting for victory at any cost. Yet the PA regime has intentionally chosen not to do this over the span of 21 months. Yes, there are occassional arrests (25 just today), but these are usually low-level operators and they're often released from the PA's turn-style jails after a couple days suggesting that such arrests are just for show (for the west) and not a serious effort to stem terrorism. Then again, the majority of terrorist attacks have come from organs of Arafat's ruling Fatah party -- which funds these groups! And the PA TV and newspapers run spots that entice children to put down their toys and take up arms so that they, too, could become martyrs. And they encourage violence and speak of those who are against violence as a "fifth column" that should be dealt with like "collaborators" (i.e. murdered by Arab death squads). And Arafat speaks of phyrric victory, willing to sacrifice a "million martyrs"....
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