JERUSALEM Ñ Israel and the Palestinian Authority traded lethal blows
in a weekend of intense clashes.
Palestinian insurgents killed at least 13 Israeli civilians in two
attacks on late Saturday. In Jerusalem, 11 people were killed when a suicide
bomber blew himself up in a crowded cafe next to the home of Israeli Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon. Sharon was not at home.
In Netanya, Palestinian insurgents hurled grenades and fired
semi-automatic weapons toward pedestrians near a hotel. Two Israelis were
killed.
The Fatah movement of Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat
claimed responsibility for both attacks.
For their part, Israeli troops and tanks operated throughout Palestinian
refugee camps in the West Bank. Palestinian sources said that more than 60
people were killed in clashes on Friday and Saturday.
Israeli troops captured about 600 suspects in the Tulkarm refugee camp
as well as a factory to assemble the Kassam-2 short-range rocket. The
military captured the camp after two days of house-to-house fighting.
The military also entered the West Bank city of Bethlehem. Troops,
backed by an estimated 40 tanks, entered the Dehaishe refugee camp outside
the city in a search-and-destroy operation against Palestinian insurgents.
In the Gaza Strip, Israeli tanks entered the northern town of Bet Hanoun
on Saturday. Israeli F-16 fighter-jets and AH-64A attack helicopters also
attacked targets around Bethlehem, Gaza City and Ramallah.
Earlier, the United States expressed concern over reports that Israeli
shells had struck and damaged Palestinian relief facilities. Israel has
apologized several times for incidents in which Palestinian civilians have
been killed in attacks on PA facilities.
