Israeli forces raided the West Bank city of Nablus early on Friday. A Palestinian policeman, Abdel Karim Arja, and a civilian were killed in a gun battle that erupted as Israeli troops and armored vehicles thrust into the west and north of Nablus in a raid the army said was intended "to prevent terror attacks."
An Israeli officer was shot dead. Two other soldiers were injured in the incident, one seriously and one lightly, Israeli media reports maintained.
Israeli troops took over several buildings and were reported to be carrying out arrests. They destroyed a three-story building, witnesses said. On Friday noon the Israeli troops started to withdraw after "ending their mission,", Israel Radio reported.
About 15 Palestinians, mostly members of Islamic groups, were detained by the Israeli forces.
A Palestinian boy died from injuries suffered in an explosion in an abandoned police station that killed one of his brothers and blew the legs and one hand off another, doctors said.
Nidal Ismail, 12, died Friday after suffering shrapnel wounds to his stomach, chest and eyes as well as second-degree burns in the explosion Wednesday, his doctor at Bethlehem's Hussein Hospital said.
Elsewhere in the West Bank, the Israeli military said two Hamas members were arrested overnight in the village of Bidya, east of the northern town of Qalqilya, and that special forces entered the village of Duma, southwest of Hebron, and arrested three Palestinians.
Peace Summit
On the diplomatic front, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said preparations were under way for a Middle East peace conference this summer but no venue or precise date had yet been set.
He mentioned preparations for the summer conference after meeting U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and two European Union leaders -- the so-called "quartet" set up to co-ordinate the international effort to find peace.
"This is a time for prompt action to take advantage of this new window of opportunity that has been presented to us, and we intend to do just that," Powell said.
Powell warned Arafat did not have "many more chances" to "move in a new directrion" by using his leadership to stop anti-Israel violence.
Israel and the Palestinians on Friday cautiously welcomed the U.S. proposal to convene an international Mideast peace conference, but stopped short of promising to attend.
Both sides said they wanted more details. Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, speaking at his shell-struck headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah on Friday, said he had not been informed officially about the plan.
"Until now, it is only an idea and we welcome it, but we have still not agreed to it," Arafat said, adding that he would consult with Arab leaders before making a decision.
(Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
