RAMALLAH Ñ Israeli troops have been ordered to stay in West Bank
cities amid heightened violence in the Palestinian areas.
Officials said the military has been told maintain its deployment in
such
cities as Jenin, Nablus and Tulkarm over an indefinite period.
Israeli officials said the military will begin mobilizing reserves this
week to facilitate the deployment in the West Bank. They said several
thousands of reserves would help bolster security at Jewish settlements and
seek to halt Palestinian insurgents trying to infiltrate Israel.
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer is scheduled to meet a
parliamentary committee on Monday to ask for the emergency mobilization. The
reserves will be mobilized for up to a month.
Israeli government sources said Prime Minister Ariel Sharon believes he
has obtained a green light from the United States to expand a military
offensive for at least the next few days. The sources said Bush has delayed
plans to announce a plan for a Palestinian state.
Over the weekend, Palestinian sources said Israeli troops killed 10
Palestinians in clashes throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip. On Friday,
four Palestinians were killed by Israeli tank fire in Jenin.
Palestinian gunners fired mortars at a Jewish settlement in the Gaza
Strip. Three mortars landed in the community on Saturday. Nobody was hurt.
