Israeli troops kill 2, detain 30 Palestinians
AFP, Jericho
Israeli troops detained more than 30 suspected militants in Jericho yesterday, accusing the Palestinian Authority of allowing the sleepy West Bank town of becoming a "shelter for terrorists". At least 20 jeeps and five tanks moved into Jericho at around 5:00 am (0200 GMT), with aerial cover provided by two helicopters, where they remained for around five hours. All entrances were sealed off while a curfew was imposed. The sound of sporadic gunfire could be heard throughout the morning as troops searched through houses although only four injuries were reported. Jericho is the only autonomous Palestinian town that has escaped reoccupation by the Israeli army at any stage since the start of the Intifada but the Israelis have long believed its status has enabled it to become a hiding place for some of the most wanted militants. The commander of the operation, Colonel Roni Belkin, said that the army had decided to act after repeated requests to the Palestinian Authority to carry out arrests themselves had failed to bring action. "We have found that Jericho has come to be a shelter town for terrorists," Belkin told AFP. "Most (of the detained suspects) were managing terror or had committed terror acts themselves. Despite repeated requests to the PA apparatus, no action had been taken." He said that around 35 people had been arrested, from a variety of Palestinian factions. Palestinian residents said that part of the town's ancient mosque had been damaged by the soldiers during the arrest operation, adding that two houses had been dynamited. A military source said that a haul of weapons and ammunition, including Kalashnikov assault rifles and grenades, had been recovered. Further north in the West Bank, the Israeli army also staged an incursion into the city of Nablus where soldiers began a door-to-door search for wanted militants. Meanwhile, in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah, a nine-year-old boy was shot dead by Israeli troops during an incursion. Omar Mohammed Abu Zreihan was pronounced dead on arrival at hospital after being shot in the head during the early morning operation in the Brazil neighbourhood, witnesses said. Around 15 armoured vehicles had entered Rafah, which was the scene of a major Israeli offensive around a month ago.
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