A six-year-old Palestinian child was killed by Israeli fire in Balata refugee camp outside this northern West Bank city. Mohammad al-Araj was hit in the chest after being caught out in the street by exchanges between stonethrowing demonstrators and Israeli troops, Palestinian medics said Sunday.
Another Palestinian boy was pronounced dead Sunday after being shot by Israeli troops and fell into coma in the Nablus. Palestinian medical sources in the West Bank city said that Noureddin Emran, 16, was shot Saturday by Israeli soldiers in the Balata refugee camp. He was shot with a rubber-coated bullet in his head and fell into coma.
Also in the refugee camp, Zuhair Awis, 48, was killed by tear gas used by Israeli troops. Zuhair was the brother of Nasser Awis the founder of Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, who is jailed in Israel.
Earlier, Israeli occupying forces operating in the city, detained Adnan Asfur, 38, in the early hours of Sunday. Asfur, is a prominent Hamas leader and also the official spokesman of the movement in the West Bank. He has been wanted by Israel for several years, Al Jazeera TV said. Asfur was staying in his brother's house when the Israeli forces raided it.
Dr. Muhammad Ghazal, a political leader of Hamas, reacted to the arrest by saying it will not stop the Palestinian people from continuing its intifada.
Overnight Saturday, Israeli troops demolished two buildings in the outskirts of Rafah, near the border between Israel and Egypt.
Israeli security sources said that the buildings were used as a starting point for an underground tunnel that last week took Palestinians close to an Israeli outposts, where they detonated two explosive devices.
In another development, 15 reservists serving in Israel's elite Sayeret Matkal unit on Sunday evening signed a letter declaring their refusal to serve in the occupied territories. The letter - signed by soldiers and officers - was delivered to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office later Sunday evening.
Sayeret Matkal - the Israeli General Staff's elite special-operations force carries weight because of its standing in Israeli society. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
