Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and his Palestinian peer Mahmud Abbas (Abu Mazen) will meet later this week in Jerusalem for their second round of talks in less than two weeks, Israel Radio reported Tuesday.
Earlier, reports said the two leaders would meet on Wednesday, but Palestinian sources said the delay was caused by scheduling conflicts tied to foreign diplomats' visits with Palestinian Authority officials.
Palestinian Authority sources said expected that Abu Mazen would agree to accept a possible Israeli offer to cede security authority over parts of the Gaza Strip, media reports said.
On the ground, Israeli troops in the West Bank of Jenin imposed a curfew on residents, during the course of a pre-dawn operation. One Israeli soldier was reportedly wounded in an exchange of fire.
Elsewhere, occupation forces early Tuesday demolished the house of a Fatah activist killed last month while being pursued by Israeli troops, south of the West Bank city of Hebron.
Meanwhile, Hamas gunners fired a home-made Qassam rocket at the Israeli town of Sderot Tuesday, striking an open market in the town. Two Israelis were treated for shock, reports said.
In another sign for the Israeli aggression, troops shot at a convoy of diplomatic vehicles at a military roadblock in the Gaza Strip on Monday, twice hitting the windscreen of one of the cars but causing no injuries, diplomatic sources said.
The diplomats were badly shaken by the incident as the small convoy was stopped leaving the town of Beit Hanun in northern Gaza, the sources said. They said the convoy included representatives of Switzerland, Britain, Greece, Sweden, and Austria. (Albawaba.com)
© 2003 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
