Israel calls up reservists for war on 'Palestinian terrorism'

JERUSALEM - Israeli armour rumbled into another Palestinian city yesterday and the Army said it was calling up a brigade of reservists as part of what it described as a "war against terrorism".

Palestinian witnesses said about 60 Israeli vehicles, including tanks and armoured personnel carriers, pushed into Qalqilya in the West Bank before sunrise and took over several buildings. No resistance was reported.

The return to Qalqilya, several days after Israeli forces ended an operation in the city, followed a threat by Amos Yaron, director-general of Israel's Defence Ministry, to launch a "crushing offensive" until Palestinian suicide bombings stopped.

The violence, and debate within the United States Administration over what Palestinians should be required to do to win the statehood they seek in the West Bank and Gaza, has led President George W. Bush to put off a speech charting a road map for peace.

The Army tightened its grip on several West Bank cities over the weekend, in an offensive which Palestinian officials have said is aimed at toppling the Palestinian Authority.

An Army statement said that "due to the security situation, the IDF (Israel Defence Force) is calling up a brigade of reservists".

"The reservists will undergo training and will then join IDF regular forces in the war against Palestinian terrorism."

Israel Radio said several thousand reservists would be mobilised for at least a month.

The Army's re-occupation of Palestinian West Bank areas in April and last month led to the arrest of hundreds of militants and extensive destruction of civilian infrastructure, but did not stop Palestinian attacks after the troops withdrew.

Responding to the killing of 31 Israelis in two suicide bombings in Jerusalem and an attack on a Jewish settlement last week, Israel said it would retake and hold land under Palestinian control as long as attacks continued.

On Saturday, witnesses said troops had shot and wounded five Palestinians who broke a curfew in the West Bank city of Nablus.

An Army spokesman said soldiers used "dispersal methods" against Palestinians throwing rocks at them.

Israeli forces also shot dead four Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, including a man who had thrown grenades at soldiers.

Israeli soldiers in the West Bank continued operations over the weekend in Nablus, Jenin, Bethlehem and the area of Betounia near Ramallah, reoccupied after the Jerusalem bombings.

Tensions were high in Jenin after Israeli tanks fired on a fruit and vegetable market, killing three children and a man and wounding 26 people who mistakenly thought a curfew had been lifted and came out to shop.

"Minister of Defence Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said he is very sorry civilians were killed and has asked the Army to set up an investigation," an Israeli Defence Ministry spokesman said.

On Thursday night, a Palestinian shot dead three Israeli children, their mother and a security guard in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Itamar.

The incident spurred Israel to send tanks into nearby Nablus and Jewish settlers to drive on Friday into a Palestinian town close to the city, where they killed a man.

Police said they had arrested a 27-year-old settler in connection with the incident.

At least 1414 Palestinians and 547 Israelis have been killed in 21 months of violence that erupted in September 2000 after talks on terms for a Palestinian state stalled.

- REUTERS

Feature: Middle East

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