The al Aksa Intifada could be moving into a deadlier stage as Palestinian groups develop more sophisticated weapons and Islamic and secular factions drop their ideological differences, analysts say.
Recent press reports that the Palestinians had, for the first time, used anti-tank weapons (RPG) against Israeli armored vehicles in the West Bank was the latest indication Palestinian groups are willing to step up their fight.
Palestinians have for some time had anti-armor weaponry, rocket-propelled grenades, anti-tank missiles and shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles, all of which are banned by the Oslo peace agreements, Israeli experts contend.
Under the 1993 Oslo accords, the Palestinian Authority were permitted some 15,000 rifles and machine guns.
But as the conflict escalates, Palestinian fighters are turning to more far-reaching means, according to Israeli security officials, cited by AFP.
The addition of advanced arms, such as the longer-range Qassam 2 rocket, with a range of some 10 kilometers coupled with reports that Islamic groups are experimenting with chemical warheads, could shift the conflict to an unprecedented level of violence. Qassam 2 rocket is a long-range missile developed by the Islamic group of Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Spokesman for Hamas said Qassam-2 rockets have been already deployed also in the West Bank and Israeli military sources predicted the Palestinian Authority and its allied forces are preparing to launch from there attacks. The sources said these missile attacks with the new short-range rocket would target Israeli cities around Tel Aviv and Ben-Gurion International Airport.
Recently, Israel's chief of staff Shaul Mofaz confirmed the Qassam 2 had been brought to the West Bank so Palestinian groups could manufacture them there.
"Trial runs have already been carried out and they are now moving on to manufacture more rockets so they will be able to strike cities within Israel," he told a group of journalists.
Israeli security officials have warned recently that Hamas may try to launch Qassam 2 rockets at Jewish settlements in the Sharon region, the central plains that span the West Bank and Israel. One scenario, according to Israeli sources, is that Palestinian activists fire the Qassam-2 from the West Bank city of Qalqilya, which is located two kilometers from the Israeli city of Kafar Saba.
Israeli military affairs reporter Ze'ev Schiff said the aim of obtaining new weapons capability was to escalate the situation to crisis point which would force either the Arab states or the international community to intervene.
"It's clear that if the Palestinians engage in activities, which are bigger and more serious, we will react in a stronger way, and maybe that will cause a big enough crisis to get the international community involved. "If they have weapons that could hit the airport, for example, it is clear that Israel's reaction would be very, very drastic," he told AFP.
"Long-range missiles can have a reach of 30 kilometers which would place Ben Gurion, Israel's international airport, within range of almost anywhere in the West Bank," Hillel Frisch, senior researcher at the BESA center for strategic studies at Bar Ilan University said. "That is a tremendous reach."
For its part, Hamas announced it is working on the Qassam-3. This rocket will have a range of 20 kilometers.
Israeli military officials confirmed the Hamas statements. They said so far Hamas has launched in Gaza Strip the Qassam-1 with a range of 4.5 kilometers and what the sources termed the “Qassam 1.5”, an interim rocket that falls short of the range of Qassam-2. The 90 mm “Qassam 1.5” is said to have a range of 6-7 kilometers and a 1.5-kilogram warhead.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has made it clear that any missile attack on a major population centers would force Israel to retaliate with extreme force.
"We are very disturbed by warnings of the launching of Qassam 1 and 2 missiles," Sharon told the parliamentary foreign and defense committee.
"We sent an unequivocal message, directly through the Americans, that the launching of such rockets and mortars into our territory will bring about a complete change in our entire mode of operation," he said. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
