Israeli soldiers detained two wanted Palestinians in the West Bank overnight. One of them was arrested in the village of Ilar, near Tulkarem, and the other was arrested in Issawiya, adjacent to Ramallah.
Elsewhere, Israeli troops carried out searches from early Sunday morning in the village of Yata near the West Bank city of Hebron.
According to an Israeli report, soldiers took more than 15 Palestinians in for questioning, many were later released. Among those arrested were a number of Fatah activists and three Palestinians wanted by Israel.
Also Sunday, an explosive device detonated in Hebron's Jewish settlement. No injuries were reported in the blast, and Israeli troops were searching the area for those who placed the device.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) Speaker Ahmed Qurea (Abu Ala) said the parliament would convene on Monday in the West Bank town of Ramallah.
Qurea told the Palestinian daily of Al Quds that the PLC would open a new parliamentarian period on Monday and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat would address the parliament with an important speech that would review the current political situation.
Abu Ala added that Israel has not yet informed the Palestinian Authority that it would prevent any of the PLC members from Gaza and the West Bank from attending the session on Monday.
Legally and according to the international laws, no one who claims that believes in democracy would be able to prevent parliamentarians from attending the a session of their parliament, the Speaker added.
However, Israel will bar twelve PLC members who reside in the Gaza Strip from attending Monday session, Palestinian sources said Sunday.
According to the Palestinian sources, Israel announced that 14 PLC members from Gaza would not be able to reach Ramallah. The ban will affect twelve individuals, due to the fact that one of the 14 men, Waji Yahi, died five months ago, and another one, Ruhi Fatouh, Abu Ala's deputy, is already in Ramallah.
Yehiyeh
Palestinian Authority Minister of Interior Abdel Razaq Yehiyeh denied reports Sunday claiming he has resigned from his position. Yehiyeh told reporters that he did not and would not resign from his position.
Argument, discussion of administrative reforms, and the exchange views within an organization or the government was "natural and healthy," Yehiyeh said. He also reiterated his calls to Palestinian groups to stop immediately militarizing the two-year-old intifada.
"The Palestinians shouldn't pay the price for the security of the State of Israel," he said. "Violence and the reactions that follow violence are destructive and lead to severe loss."
Using arms in resisting the Israeli military occupation was a "historical mistake," he added. "Instead of being the victims, we were classified in the list of terrorists, and this gave Israel a clear excuse and a clear reason to carry out a tough war against our people," said Yehiyeh. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
