Bronzesnake
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« Reply #3 on: June 08, 2005, 02:32:00 PM » |
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Israeli air strike targets Palestinian militants firing rockets
By IBRAHIM BARZAK GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) - An Israeli aircraft on Wednesday fired at a group of Hamas militants preparing to attack Israeli targets in the southern Gaza Strip, Palestinian witnesses said, further straining a fragile ceasefire and escalating tensions in the region.
The witnesses said the militants escaped unharmed. But the incident, near the city of Khan Younis, was the latest sign of trouble for the ceasefire. Six people were killed Tuesday in a series of clashes in the West Bank and Gaza, making it one of the bloodiest days since the truce was declared on Feb. 8.
During more than four years of fighting, Israel has carried out dozens of air strikes in Gaza, virtually halting the practice since the truce declaration.
Despite the fighting, Israeli and Palestinian officials were making efforts to prevent the situation from deteriorating further.
Israeli Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz and his Palestinian counterpart, Nasser Yousef, were to meet later Wednesday evening to discuss the security situation, and Palestinian officials in Gaza claimed they blew up four explosives discovered near a Jewish settlement. Israel did not comment on the claim.
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said he expects the ceasefire to survive and urged militants to respect it.
"I'm not worried about the calm," Abbas said after a meeting with visiting British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw. "The calm is our responsibility, and I hope that all of us will honour their responsibilities."
Abbas spoke before the Israeli air strike. Later Wednesday, he headed to Gaza for talks with Hamas and other militant groups. Officials said the talks would focus on the latest incidents as well as a dispute between Abbas's Fatah Party and Hamas over recently postponed legislative elections.
Israeli officials have urged Abbas to crack down on militant groups like Hamas and reserve the right to hit militants carrying out attacks, as in Wednesday's air strike in Gaza.
Straw, speaking to reporters, said Britain supports Israel's right to defend itself.
The militants have sent mixed signals over the truce. Hamas and Islamic Jihad have periodically fired barrages of rockets and mortars at Israeli targets, claiming they are in response to Israeli violations. At the same time, the groups have said they remain committed to preserving the quiet.
On Wednesday, a senior Hamas official in the West Bank said the group is ready for dialogue with the U.S. and Europe, even though it rejects calls from the West to disarm.
"We are interested in the dialogue," said Mohammed Ghazal. "But we are not able to meet their conditions now before resolving our national cause."
Straw ruled out any talks with the group, which calls for the destruction of Israel, as long as it remains committed to violence.
In Washington, U.S. officials on Tuesday also rejected talks with Hamas. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said Hamas "is designated as a terrorist organization, and we do not have dialogue with designated terrorist organizations."
Israel wants the ceasefire to remain in effect to ease the way for its planned withdrawal from Gaza and part of the West Bank in August.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon chaired a ministerial meeting Wednesday where preparations for the withdrawal were discussed.
The meeting was uncharacteristically opened to journalists, in an apparent effort to dispel impressions that the government isn't ready to provide alternative housing, jobs and schools for the 9,000 settlers who are to be relocated.
"The evacuation will take place on schedule," Sharon said, criticizing "incitement," threats and pressure on the settlers by opponents of the pullout.
Officials said only about half of the settlers slated for evacuation are in talks with the government about moving, defying calls by their leaders to oppose the plan at all costs, officials said Wednesday.
Pullout opponents have urged settlers not to co-operate with the pullout plan, and some settlers who have said they are ready to go say they have been threatened and ostracized.
"They are not concerned with the fate of the settlers and their children," Sharon said. "They are willing to create great suffering on top of the suffering the evacuation will inflict, in order to achieve their political aims."
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