JERUSALEM Ñ Israel has intercepted a Palestinian insurgency squad sent
by Iraq as it attempted to cross the Jordan River into the West Bank at the Allenby Bridge.
Israeli military sources said the three-member squad was trained in Iraq
to attack Israel's international airport. The squad was composed of
Palestinians from the Ramallah area in the West Bank and belonged to the
Baghdad-based Arab
Liberation Front.
Israeli military officers have arrived in the United States to brief the
Defense Department on the capture of the squad. The sources said the Israeli
delegation relayed the plans and type of training obtained by the
Iraqi-sponsored group.
The Palestinian squad planned to obtain and fire anti-tank and
anti-aircraft missiles toward Israeli cars and aircraft, the sources said.
The sources did not say who would supply the missiles.
The sources said the squad was captured as they tried to
cross from Jordan into the West Bank on Sept. 13. They said the
alleged Palestinian insurgents were questioned and detained on the Allenby
Bridge that connects the Hashemite kingdom and the Israeli-controlled West
Bank.
This was not the first insurgency squad sent to attack targets in
Israel, the sources said. They said Iraq has used the Arab Liberation Front
to recruit, train and finance Palestinians and send the most promising of
them to Iraq to prepare for major attacks in Israel.
The Israeli Yediot Aharonot daily reported on Tuesday that the
government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon relayed a warning to Iraq against
any missile attack. The Israeli message asserted that Israel will not
maintain restraint in the face of any Iraqi attack.families of others killed in
the Palestinian war have received about $10,000.
