Associated Press
JERUSALEM — Israeli tanks rolled into the Palestinian city of Jenin in the West Bank and opened fire early today, leveling the main police station, Palestinian officials said.
The incursion — following two suicide bombings in less than a week — was the first time Israeli forces have entered the center of a Palestinian controlled city in 10 months of hostilities. Israel has said the bombers were dispatched from Jenin.
About 10 tanks rumbled through the city from an Israeli base just outside of Jenin. They stopped in front of several key Palestinian buildings near the main square, said Haider Irshad, the vice governor of Jenin.
The tanks concentrated their fire on the police headquarters, about 200 yards from the square, and bulldozers were also called in to help with the destruction of the building, said Irshad, whose office represents Palestinian Leader Yasser Arafat.
Tanks moved in front of the governor’s office and general headquarters for the security services, but did not appear to be firing, he said.
Palestinian gunmen fired at the Israeli tanks, witnesses said. No Israeli ground troops were seen in the city, Irshad said.
The Israeli military had no immediate comment, and there was no word on casualties.
Israeli forces have briefly entered Palestinian-controlled territory on multiple occasions during Mideast fighting, but today’s incursion was the first time they have entered a Palestinian-controlled city.
Meanwhile, Palestinians in east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip on Monday observed a general strike and demonstrators scuffled with Israeli police at Orient House, a Palestinian political office in east Jerusalem that Israel seized last week.
The United States has criticized the Israeli takeover as "political escalation." Arab nations have expressed fury with the move, which the Israelis say is designed to reassert their authority in all of Jerusalem.
Except for demonstrations, streets were deserted as merchants shuttered their shops and government employees stayed home.
Copyright ©2001 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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