Israeli troops killed Hamas leader Amjad Hanawi Sunday night in the West Bank, while a second Palestinian was killed in the Gaza Strip on Monday when Israeli soldiers opened fire on him as he approached the Karni checkpoint. Two other men were reportedly injured severely in the incident, according to Palestinian police.
14 other Palestinians were apprehended in raids throughout the West Bank overnight Sunday in the towns Nablus, Rantis, north-west of Ramallah, Tul Karem and El Khader, north of Bethlehem.
Hanawi was reportedly killed in a gunfight in the town of Nablus, where large Israeli forces reportedly entered overnight Sunday and early Monday. Hamas vowed quick revenge for the killing, saying, "We will respond quickly and in a harmful way against Israel for the murder of Amjad Hanawi."
The movement's leaders added that "the killing of Hanawi proves that Israel only understands force. Instead of talking about an extended calm, the (Palestinian) Authority must protect the Palestinian nation and its resistance groups."
Also in the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces fired mortar rounds into the Strip in attempt to prevent missile attacks into southern Israeli towns.
US Secretary Condoleeza Rice calls for Palestinian, Israeli copperation
Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived in Jerusalem on Sunday to meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in an attempt to revive the faltering peace initiatives between the two.
Rice's overnight stop comes two months after the Israel withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, and a year after the death of former Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat.
Speaking in Jerusalem, Rice urged both Israelis and Palestinians to avoid any escalation of violence, including suicide bombings in Israel and Israeli aerial bombardment on the Gaza Strip.
She also stressed that the establishment of a Palestinian state would benefit Israel. "A Palestinian state would indeed enhance Israeli security," Rice said. She added, “With the Israelis we have been clear that the important thing is to understand, and to always be cognisant of, the consequences of whatever they do,” she told reporters.
She also stressed the importance of upholding each side's commitment under the "roadmap" for peace, according to AFP.
Rice's visit comes as Palestinian leaders called for the swift reopening of the Gaza-Egypt border which has been closed since Israel's withdrawal from Gaza.
“Israel is still suffocating the Palestinian economy on purpose,” civil affairs minister Mohammed Dahlan Dahlan told reporters Sunday after meeting with international economics envoy James Wolfensohn.
© 2005 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
