Israeli troops prevented an attempt overnight Thursday by three Palestinians to infiltrate the Gaza Strip settlement of Kfar Darom, Israel Radio reported.
Two of the Palestinians were killed in the gunbattle that ensued, and troops were chasing after a third one.
In the West Bank, the Israeli army razed the Tulkarem house of a Hamas member suspected of involvement in the Passover suicide bombing at the Park Hotel in Netanya, which killed 29 Israelis.
Meanwhile, Palestinian Interior Minister Abel Razak Yehiyeh failed Thursday night to convince Islamic and national factions to back an end to attacks against Israeli citizens and accept Israel's plan to ease its military clampdown in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
A member of one of the factions said they were not convinced that Israel was doing its part in ending its own killings of activists and incursions into Palestinian lands.
"Yehiyeh asked for a suspension of some attacks in order to allow for the understanding to succeed," he told Reuters. "The continuation by Israel to launch incursions and carry out assassinations against Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank cast a shadow over the meeting and the minister failed to convince us of the plan, mainly because of Israeli practices."
Hamas and Islamic Jihad had rejected the "Gaza-Bethlehem First" plan before and have vowed to continue attacks. Mahmoud A Zahar, a senior Hamas member, said Yehiyeh told the meeting that he had not agreed anything in writing with Israel.
"Yehiyeh told us about his theory regarding the resistance and the uprising. He sees that the forms of the resistance do not serve the Palestinian cause. No one attending agreed with him." (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
