World
West Bank
Attacks Bring
New Concern
Dan Baron
— Leo D. Maxbauer
Senior Managing Director
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Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Jerusalem
wo terrorist incidents in the
West Bank have some
Israeli officials warning
about a new stage in-the 5-year-
old Palestinian intifada against
Israel. Twin drive-by shootings
Sunday killed three Israelis in the
West Bank and wounded four.
Most of the casualties were
teenage settlers trying to hitch
rides home.
The Al Aksa Brigade, the ter-
rorist wing of Palestinian
Authority President Mahmoud
Abbas' Fatah faction, claimed
responsibility for the attacks, the
worst against West Bank settlers
in four months.
Israel accused the Palestinians
of abusing recent Defense
Ministry decisions to ease restric-
tions on Palestinian movement in
the West Bank out of respect for
the Ramadan fast month.
In response, Israel suspended
security coordination efforts with
the Palestinian Authority. But
Israeli officials said diplomatic
contacts with the Palestinian
Authority would continue.
Israeli forces also imposed new
restrictions on West Bank traffic,
requiring Palestinians to travel by
public transport rather than pri-
vate cars. The army imposed a
closure on Hebron and Bethlehem
in a further bid to prevent terror-
ists from reaching roads used by
Israelis.
Sunday's bloodshed was an
embarrassment for Abbas, who
was slated to travel to Washington
for talks with President Bush later
this week. "This is unfortunate. It
shouldn't have happened. We
should work hard in order to pre-
vent this from happening;' P.A.
Planning Minister Ghassan
Khatib said.
Israel has called on Bush to use
the talks with Abbas to demand
that the Palestinian Authority ful-
fill its obligation under the road-
map peace plan to crack down on
terrorists in the West Bank and
Gaza Strip.
In an effort to head off the crit-
icism, the Palestinian Authority
T
October 20 2005
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