Bloody confrontations erupted between Palestinian demonstrators and Israeli troops in the West Bank city of Hebron, leaving a number of injuries among Palestinians, reported Al-Jazira satellite channel.
The report said that confrontations also took place in the different West Bank cities and the Gaza Strip.
Tension remained high at flashpoints in the Palestinian territories on Monday following the deaths of another two teenagers and the overnight pounding of an Arab village by Israeli helicopter gunships.
Ashraf Habayeb, 15, and Saeed Tanbour, 18, died of injuries they sustained in clashes with the Israeli forces on Monday, said Palestine and Jazira TV channels.
The Palestinian TV said that Nada Sarouji, 52, was killed early Tuesday when she was working in an olive orchard in the West Bank town of Tulkarem.
Sarouji is the first woman to be killed in the 25 days of bloody violence in the Palestinian territories, which has claimed the lives of more than 130 Palestinians. Around 5000 were injured, according to Palestinian statistics.
Israel said it feared a continuation of the violence after Prime Minister Ehud Barak declared a "time out" in the seven-year Middle East peace process, said AFP.
"At this stage we are not facing a war but we definitely have to be prepared for it and also for a situation where the level of the flames in the confrontation with the Palestinians gets higher," army chief of staff Shaul Mofaz told army radio.
Israel said Sunday's suspension of peace negotiations with the Palestinians will last as long as violence continues, a measure that prompted Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat to insist on his people's right to an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
"Whether (Barak) accepts or does not accept, let him go to hell," Arafat said after a two-day Arab League summit that condemned Israel for the bloodletting but stopped short of announcing any concrete steps against the Jewish state, according to the agency.
The Israeli army also announced Monday it was deploying troops to circle the Arab town of Beit Jala near Bethlehem after gunfire from the area repeatedly targeted the Jewish settlement of Gilo on the outskirts of Jerusalem overnight.
"I advise the residents of Beit Jala to leave their homes if there is new firing in the direction of Gilo from their locality," Mofaz warned.
Attack helicopters blasted rockets and machine-guns at three buildings in the town late Sunday after shooting from the area targeted Gilo and the army said it had set up roadblocks around Beit Jala to prevent "armed elements" entering the area.
"We have the green light to react with all the means at our disposal to these attacks against Gilo," the commander of Israeli forces in the sector, General Marcel Aviv, told army radio, quoted by AFP.
Sporadic gunfire was exchanged for several hours on Sunday night, with Israeli television showing dramatic footage of the gunfire and rocket attacks lighting up the night sky. There were no reports of casualties.
The Yediot Aharonot Israeli newspaper said Barak phoned US President Bill Clinton to keep him abreast of the situation, including the Gilo-Beit Jala firefights.
According to the report, Barak compared the incident to a foreign entity firing on homes in Chevy Chase, saying it was an "intolerable situation." – (Several Sources)
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
