TEL AVIV Ñ Israel's military plans to draft additional reservists in
its drive against the Palestinian Authority.
Military sources said the Israel Defense Forces has requested a
mobilization of 31,000 soldiers for the current offensive in the West Bank.
So far, the military has drafted 20,000 reservists for the mission.
The military issued its request in a meeting with the Knesset Foreign
Affairs and Defense Committee. The committee is expected to decide the issue
by early next week.
Israeli troops and tanks are operating in at least six cities on the
West Bank. They are Bethlehem, Hebron, Kalkilya, Nablus, Ramallah, and
Tulkarm. In some of the cities, Israeli troops are conducting house-to-house
searches for Palestinian insurgents and weapons.
The mobilization is also meant to respond to a renewal of Hizbullah
attacks on Israel's northern border. On Wednesday, Hizbullah fired Katyusha
rockets, anti-tank missiles and mortars at Israeli military positions along
the border with Lebanon. It was the third Hizbullah attack in as many days.
Israeli artillery and fighter-jets attacked Hizbullah positions in
southern Lebanon. An Israeli soldier was reported injured.
On Thursday, a Cabinet committee decided that Israel will respond to the
Hizbullah attacks. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon blamed Hizbullah and
the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command for the
attacks.
In a separate development, the Lebanese government said Syrian troops
will pull out of central Lebanon later this week. Officials said Syrian
troops will withdraw from the Mount Lebanon area and redeploy along the Dar
El Baidar mountain ridge about 22 kilometers east of Beirut. In June, Syrian
troops were reported to have left Beirut.
