Nine Palestinians were hurt Friday morning, during exchanges of fire with Israeli occupation forces in a neighborhood of Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip. Palestinian sources reported that several of the injured were severely injured.
In the West Bank, six Palestinians were arrested in Ramallah and Tulkarem.
Israeli cabinet
Israel's Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is set to start talks with the far-right National Union-Yisrael Beiteinu faction on Sunday in an attempt to establish a narrow, right-leaning government, Israel Radio reported Friday.
Sharon met former Israeli Army chief of staff Shaul Mofaz on Thursday evening, and offered him the post of defense minister.
Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat reacting by saying this appointment did not bode well for Middle East peace. "Mofaz on one side, Ya'alon on the other and Sharon over them, what do you imagine will happen in the region?" Arafat said in remarks broadcast on Arabic satellite television al-Jazeera.
"Therefore, the Israeli people must take into consideration these things for the sake of peace which is not only in the interest of Palestinians but also Israelis and Arabs," Arafat said.
Arafat expressed concern about the moderate Labor Party's pullout from Sharon's coalition on Wednesday, and Thursday's news that Israel's new defense minister would be Shaul Mofaz. "I expect an escalation against us, especially if we're talking about such a new government," Arafat said.
In another interview with Associated Press Television News, Arafat also predicted the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would worsen now that Sharon depends on far-right and religious parties to cling to power.
Arafat added he remains committed to achieving peace with Israel despite two years of fighting and said he considers suicide attacks against Israeli civilians to be immoral.
"I say to the Israelis, come tomorrow and sit at the negotiation table," said the Palestinian leader. "Let's go back to the peace of the brave."
Arafat conveyed Israel's repeated killing of Palestinian activists accused of "terrorism" has sabotaged his efforts to reach agreements with the armed groups to end attacks on Israelis. He pledged to work to end such attacks if Israel withdrew from the Palestinian areas that it has occupied in the past two years.
"Why don't you pull out, and we'll bring the Americans and we'll work together to end such attacks?" he said, addressing Israel's government. Asked if he considered the attacks immoral, Arafat replied: "Yes, they are immoral. We condemn these attacks all the time."
Warning against a U.S. strike on Iraq, Arafat said, "I hope that this war will not take place because this will lead to a catastrophe in the whole area of the Middle East."
"I hope that such conflicts will be resolved in the United Nations since the Iraqis have accepted (U.N. weapons) inspectors back," he said. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
