An Israeli soldier was lightly injured Wednesday afternoon when Palestinian snipers fired on the vehicle he was travelling in near a settlement close to the West Bank city of Ramallah.
Meanwhile, fifteen members of the Palestinian security forces have been arrested as part of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's enforcement of a truce with Israel, the PA announced Wednesday.
According to the Tel Aviv-based Haaretz daily, this move marked the first time in nearly 16 months that Arafat ordered Palestinian policemen taken into custody on suspicion they took part in assaults on Israelis.
Assassinations
In an important interview, the former head of Shin Bet, Israel's security agency, warned on Wednesday that assassinating Palestinian “terrorist” figures without providing the Palestinian people any political hope for the future was slated to fail.
Ami Ayalon, who commanded the Shin Bet from 1996 to 2000, called for the Israeli cabinet to begin a "painful process of separation" between itself and the Palestinians. This separation must itself be designed to lead to political dialogue and eventual agreements between the two sides.
"We need to create a diplomatic process. It is impossible to handle the situation without a diplomatic process or just with military means." Ayalon told Israel Radio.
"Only when we can create a feeling that they [Palestinians] have somewhere to go if they fight terror ... there is a chance that they would fight terror." Ayalon added.
Ayalon was elaborating in the interview on remarks he made the day before at a conference on security issues held at Tel Aviv.
Sharon Allows Shin Bet to Contact Palestinian Security Chiefs
Meanwhile, Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon told the current head of Shin Bet Avi Dichter to contact, if needed, Palestinian security officers to thwart what he called "terrorist operations." Sharon uttered his instruction despite the mini-cabinet's decision to cut all contacts with Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat, KUNA reported.
The Israeli radio said Dichter conveyed two days ago a plan for the Palestinian side to "fight terrorism in Nablus in particular because this city is the core of “terrorist activity." The radio quoted Israeli sources as saying the Palestinian side did not yet approve the plan.
In related news, Israel’s Defence Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer has instructed the Israeli army to allow Palestinian Authority police to move between Palestinian-controlled areas in the West Bank. The order comes after Palestinian Authority requests that, despite the Israeli army's ongoing closures, the police be granted the ability to carry out arrests and operations against terrorists throughout the West Bank, Army Radio said.
Israeli Raid on Jalkamus
Palestinian sources said Israeli tank-backed forces raided the northern West Bank village of Jalkamus early Wednesday morning. The troops took up controlling positions in the village, located southeast of the city of Jenin. According to Israel radio, the forces moved into the village in search of a bomb hidden in a residents' house. The radio added the military units located and detonated the device in a controlled explosion.
The forces left the village after the operation, Army Radio reports.
It should be recalled that two weeks ago occupation forces reportedly arrested Hamas members in Jalkamus, which is under Palestinian Authority security control. Meanwhile, Palestinian sources argued that Israeli soldiers shot a Force 17 member in the vicinity overnight.
Palestinian Planted Bomb Detonated Near Convoy of Mofaz Arrested
In another development, the Palestinian who planted the roadside bomb detonated near a convoy carrying Israel’s Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Shaul Mofaz near Hebron last month was a former member Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat's elite Force 17 presidential guard. The person, Issa Darbiya, 32, trained to fight “terror” in the US.
Agents from the Shin Bet said that while in the guard, Darbiya had also trained with the Shin Bet's bodyguard unit. The Shin Bet has held Darbiya since last Thursday, security officials told the Israeli press Tuesday. (Albawaba.com)
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
