Israel sends tanks into West Bank towns
Published 9:00 pm Wednesday, September 12, 2001
Associated Press
JERICHO, West Bank — Israel sent tanks into the West Bank town of Jericho early today at the start of a military operation, witnesses said.
Flares were fired in the air over the desert oasis town in the Jordan River Valley, and residents said 12 Israeli tanks entered the town. Loudspeakers on mosques called people out to defend the city against the invading Israeli forces.
The operation followed an Israeli invasion of the West Bank town of Jenin early Wednesday. Tanks and bulldozers entered the town, at the northern end of the West Bank, and tore down a police headquarters building.
Seven Palestinians died, including three suspected Islamic militants and an 11-year-old girl.
Senior Palestinian officials accused Israel of exploiting the world’s horror over the wave of terror in the United States to step up its strikes against Palestinian targets. Spokeswoman Hanan Ashrawi said Israel is "using this tremendous tragedy as a cover for an escalation against the Palestinians."
Israeli Defense Ministry spokesman Yarden Vatikay called the allegation absurd, saying Israel went after Palestinian militants because the Palestinian Authority was not trying to prevent terror attacks.
Seven Palestinians were killed and at least 20 wounded in the raids. Two were members of the radical Islamic Jihad, killed when Israeli tanks shelled the house they were hiding in. The 11-year-old sister of a third militant also died, Palestinian security officials said.
The Islamic Jihad has claimed responsibility for many bomb attacks in Israel that have killed dozens and wounded hundreds.
In Tamoun, the Israelis destroyed a house that belonged to a suspected militant killed in an Israel raid in July.
In a separate incident, three Palestinian security officials were killed when their convoy of unmarked cars came under Israeli helicopter attack near Tamoun, witnesses said.
In Jenin, Israeli tanks and bulldozers destroyed a two-story police headquarters building. A gunman from the militant Hamas was killed by a tank shell during the incursion.
In Gaza, a Palestinian was killed when soldiers opened fire on a taxi. The military said the vehicle ignored orders to stop.
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