In the wake of a Palestinian attack on a bus in occupied Jerusalem on Sunday that left two Israelis dead and some 35-50 wounded, Israeli troops and tanks began withdrawing from the West Bank town of Qalqilya early on Monday, said reports.
Two Israeli tanks left the town's southern entrance and four more left its northern limits, where Palestinian security officers took up positions, Palestinian security sources told Reuters.
An Israeli source confirmed that "the pullout has begun," according to the agency, but could not give a timetable for its completion.
Qalqilya was re-occupied after the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine assassinated a hawkish Israeli minister, in a move claimed to be retaliation for the killing of their own leader earlier this year.
Since seizing several areas in or around the West Bank cities, the Israeli army has arrested or killed dozens of Palestinian militants, as well as civilians, in a sweep Israel says is meant to thwart attacks against Israelis in a 13-month-old Palestinian uprising against 34 years of military occupation.
The re-occupations did not, however, prevent the Sunday attack in Jerusalem, in which a Palestinian opened fire on a bus, wounding up to 50 people and killing two Israelis identified by AP as teenagers.
The Palestinian, identified as an Islamic Jihad activist from Hebron, was shot dead by a policeman, according to CNN.
The Palestinian Authority said in a statement cited by Reuters that it "very strongly" condemned the attack and ordered its security services to arrest those involved.
The agency also noted that before the attack, an Israeli cabinet statement quoted Defense Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer as saying that "the army's stay in Area A (under Palestinian control) has exhausted its goals."
The withdrawals are also taking place under intense pressure from the US, which since the Sept. 11 attacks has been trying to rally Arab leaders behind a global campaign against terrorism. The American leverage over Israel comes in part from the fact that billions of dollars in US military aid fund Israel's armed forces.
Israel still holds parts of three other Palestinian towns - Tulkarem, Jenin and Ramallah - according to AP.
Earlier Sunday, reported CNN, Israeli helicopters attacked three Palestinian areas in northern Gaza, in a move claimed to be a response to the firing of mortar shells in the area over the weekend and last week.
The latest developments came a day after Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon cancelled a planned Nov. 11 trip to the United States, citing concerns about regional security.
His foreign minister Shimon Peres and Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat had shaken hands at a conference in Majorca on Saturday, said CNN, but no negotiations had taken place.
Sharon came into office promising to guarantee security for ordinary Israelis within a short period of time, but recently told his Likud Party leadership to prepare for a long struggle.
Over 700 Palestinians and more than 180 Israelis have been killed in the latest Palestinian uprising against 34 years of Israeli military occupation, according to news agencies - Albawaba.com
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