Israeli forces started to withdraw from the West Bank city of Tulkarem early Tuesday morning, occupied about 30 hours earlier, reported the Tel Aviv-based Haaretz daily. Troops have left most of the posts in the city, but Tulkarem is still under strict blockade.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian News Agency (WAFA) reported that Israeli tanks and armored vehicles early Tuesday morning penetrated the West Bank city of Nablus. According to eye witnesses, the tanks entered the city from its north part assisted by heavy fire. The Israeli forces, headed to the western part of the city, took up positions in the Al Majeen neighborhood and blocked Nablus-Asirah road. A Palestinian security source in the city told AP that five Palestinians, probably Hamas activists, were killed during this new Israeli raid. There is no other confirmation for this report.
Tulkarem
Israeli Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz said Monday evening that the Israeli operation in the West Bank city of Tulkarem will last throughout the night, and the decision whether to continue the operation would be made following a re-assessment of the situation. "We have no intention of staying there forever," he conveyed.
Israeli Army troops took control of Tulkarem before dawn Monday. It was the first time Israel has carried out such an operation since the outset of the Intifada 16 months ago. Israeli tanks, backed by helicopters entered the city, where soldiers imposed a curfew and arrested dozens of Palestinians. Two Palestinians killed in the city Monday during gunfights with the Israeli occupation forces.
Mofaz said that the shooting attack in Hadera last Thursday night had been carried out by the Tulkarem branch of Fatah's military wing, and that the objective of the Israeli operation is to arrest the “terrorists”, collect weapons, and lessen the “terrorist” infrastructure in the area.
According to the Israeli Chief of Staff, Israel faces a new wave of attacks that reflects Yasser Arafat's intent to escalate the conflict.
Complaint To U.N.
In the meantime, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat's senior advisor. said on Monday that the Palestinian Authority plans to file a complaint to the United Nations Security Council and demand the council meet urgently to discuss Israel's actions in the Palestinian territories.
Abu Rudeineh described Israel's invasion of Tulkarem as an aggressive act of terror, and warned Israel and the world of an escalation of regional violence that may result as a consequence of Israel's actions. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
