Palestinian fighters attacked Israeli troops with assault rifle fire and fragmentation grenades near the Gaza Strip settlement of Ganei Tal early Wednesday, lightly wounding two soldiers, Israel Radio reported.
Israeli soldiers searching the settlement's hothouses later traded fire with the two Palestinians before taking them into custody.
In the West Bank, Israeli troops who re-entered Qalqilyah on Tuesday afternoon conducted searches overnight, resulting in the arrest of two Palestinians.
In other incidents overnight, Israel’s Army Radio reported that troops arrested six wanted Palestinians in the West Bank city of Hebron. One of the Palestinians apparently managed to escape the besieged PA headquarters in the city last weekend.
Following his capture, the troops apprehended two Hamas activists and three Fatah members. In addition, the Israeli army said it arrested a wanted Palestinian in the village of Yatta, south of Hebron. Other Palestinians were arrested in Nablus and in the town of Beit Annan, near Ramallah.
Meanwhile, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat on Tuesday fired Jibril Rajoub, his West Bank security chief and Ghazi Jibali the Gaza police chief, officials said, in a major step toward reforming his security services.
Rajoub is one of the most powerful figures in the West Bank but has had a falling out with Arafat. Rajoub was replaced by the former governor of Jenin, Zuher Manafrah, public works minister Azzam al Ahmed told AFP. Manafrah confirmed that he had taken up the post.
Ahmed added Rajoub had been informed of the decision by Jamal Tarifi, minister of civil administration. Palestinian officials in Arafat's Ramallah headquarters said that Rajoub and Tarifi had been seen entering Arafat's base earlier in the evening.
The announcement came just hours after Arafat sacked another long-time security chief General Ghazi Jabali, head of his West Bank police force. West Bank Preventive Security Chief Jibril Rajoub told The Associated Press that he had been informed of Arafat's decision.
However, Gaza police chief Ghazi Jibali insisted the reports were "rumors."
Manafrah, who was governor of Jenin from 1996 until last month, said that Rajoub had been offered his position as governor of the town.
As part of his security shake-up, Arafat also made General Ribhi Arafat head of the Israeli-Palestinian liaison office (DCO) for both the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, officials said. The general had previously been head of the West Bank DCO.
The Palestinian leader also sacked Mahmud Abu Marzuk, the head of Palestinian civil defense, the same sources said. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
