The UN Security Council on Friday called for Israel to immediately withdraw its forces from large re-occupied areas of Palestine, but Israel said it would only pull back in phases. Meanwhile, three armed Palestinians were killed as they tried to infiltrate a Jewish settlement.
AFP cited reports as saying that a four-man group was intercepted by Israeli troops as they tried to get through the security fence surrounding the Dugit settlement.
It said the fourth man had apparently escaped into territory under Palestinian control.
However, Al Jazeera satellite channel quoted a Hamas statement as claiming responsibility for the attack, saying that the fighters, disguised in Israeli army uniforms, fought a battle for half an hour before "being martyred."
The deaths brought the toll of the 13-month Palestinian uprising to 929, including 729 Palestinians and 178 Israelis, according to AFP's tally.
Palestinians are fighting against a 34-year military occupation of land conquered and settled by Israel in a 1967 war.
Meanwhile, the UN Security Council found rare unanimity on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict Thursday, calling on Israel in a non-binding statement to withdraw immediately from autonomous Palestinian territories.
The statement was read to reporters by council president Richard Ryan, Ireland's ambassador to the United Nations, after a session lasting about an hour and a half.
US Ambassador John Negroponte - who threatened earlier this week to veto a legally binding resolution on Israel - said the statement "represents an endorsement of the diplomatic efforts that have been taken on the ground."
Ryan said "council members were deeply concerned by the escalation in violence and deplored the loss of life on both sides."
They "supported statements in capitals calling for immediate withdrawal of all Israeli forces from Area A," he added, referring to parts of the West Bank under Palestinian control.
Unlike a resolution, a statement to the press has no legal weight - it does not even carry the moral authority of a formal statement read in the council chamber, which becomes part of the UN record, said AFP.
Several diplomats said, however, that the fact that the council had managed to agree on anything to do with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict was a small triumph.
Palestinian officials say more than 50 Palestinians have been killed in the massive wave of Israeli attacks, now in its ninth day. The six towns remain surrounded by tanks.
In issuing the call for an Israeli withdrawal, Ryan said "members agreed that the Security Council should speak with one voice on this matter."
Israel had defied Washington's wishes for an immediate pullout from territory under Palestinian jurisdiction, but pledged to undertake a phased withdrawal if the Palestinians meet stringent demands for a total ceasefire, according to the Washington Post.
The decision was made after a late-night meeting of key cabinet ministers in Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's government.
In a statement, the cabinet declared that Israel did not intend to stay in Palestinian-controlled areas for an "extended period," and that a pullout would be possible "over time in conjunction with the fulfillment of the requirements demanded from the Palestinian Authority."
Sharon has set several conditions for a withdrawal, including the handover of suspects in the recent assassination of right-wing Tourism Minister Rehavam Zeevi, arrests and extradition of "terrorists," and a total ceasefire.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell had demanded an immediate withdrawal from Palestinian-ruled areas of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. His call was in line with the Bush administration's efforts to remove the Israeli-Palestinian conflict from the world stage. US officials regard the explosive violence as detrimental to efforts to recruit Arab and Muslim nations for President Bush's declared war on terrorism.
But there is little indication that calm will prevail, said the Post.
On Thursday, fighting flared in several cities in the West Bank, and Palestinians have been taking heavy casualties since Israeli troops invaded six West Bank cities a week ago.
Israel withdrew forces Thursday from Beit Reema, a rural township that was raided by commandos on Wednesday. At least six Palestinians died in the assault, and reports said the death toll was as high as 21.
The Israelis continue to re-occupy key cities like Nablus and Ramallah, which have been virtually without conflict for several days. However, heavy fighting broke out in Tulkarem and Bethlehem - Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
