RAMALLAH Ñ Palestinian insurgency groups have found an
increasingly reliable source for their ammunition and light weapons to
maintain their war against Israel.
Israeli and Palestinian sources said Israeli soldiers and those
connected to the criminal underworld have become an increasing supplier of
guns and ammunition to Palestinian insurgency groups. The sources said many
of the weapons and ammunition are stolen from Israeli military warehouses.
So far, Israeli authorities have arrested 10 people as part of a ring
for selling 50,000 bullets to Palestinians, mostly to the ruling Fatah
party. The sources said the ammunition ended up in the hands of Palestinian
insurgents who used the Israeli bullets in attacks.
All of the Israeli suspects were residents of Jewish settlements in the
southern
West Bank established by a wing of the ruling Likud Party. On April 27,
three Palestinian insurgents killed four people of the Israeli community
of Adora south of Hebron.
Three residents of Adora have been arrested in connection with the
weapons sales to Fatah and officials said the ammunition used could have
been sold by the Israelis. Officials said those detained were current or
former members of Israeli security forces and had access to ammunition
stockpiles.
Palestinian sources said Palestinian weapons traders have bought
hundreds of U.S.-made M-16 assault rifles from Israeli military warehouses.
They said both Palestinian criminal and insurgency elements have bought the
guns for about $1,500 each.
The sources said Palestinians often use cash and illegal drugs to
recruit Israeli soldiers and police officers to break into warehouses and
steal weapons and ammunition. Last month, two soldiers were arrested on
charges of trying to steal weapons from a depot in Kfar Saba, east of Tel
Aviv.
