Israeli troops in the West Bank shot dead a Palestinian early Wednesday during a raid to arrest his brother, a leading activist in Fatah.
Israeli sources said that in the course of the operation in the Jenin-area village of Burqin, fire was trained on the soldiers, and a gun battle ensued, during which soldiers said they hit an armed Palestinian on one of the roofs of the village.
Palestinian security sources, however, said Israeli forces burst into a Palestinian home and arrested a 22-year-old activist, firing moments later at the neighboring home of the operative's 27-year-old brother, who they said was shot and killed while looking out a window. They said the man's wife was shot in the head and seriously wounded. The dead Palestinian was not armed.
A second Palestinian was arrested overnight in the Ramallah area. There were also shooting incidents near Jenin and Nablus, Israel Radio reported.
Meanwhile, Egypt is to dispatch a delegation of intelligence officials to the Gaza Strip Wednesday to meet with Hamas leaders including the group's founder and spiritual leader, Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.
Hamas sources said the delegation would be headed by the deputy head of Egyptian Intelligence, Mustafa al Beheiri, who last month played a key role in getting Hamas and the Islamic Jihad to accept the truce agreement with Israel.
The sources said al-Beheiri would seek to reinforce Hamas' commitment to the truce. The Egyptian intelligence official will also discuss demands by Palestinian groups that all Palestinian the prisoners in Israeli jails and detention camps be released. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
