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Home and Family
IDF Begins Pullout in Kalkilya and Tulkarm
by Yated Ne'eman Staff

Under intense pressure from the US, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ordered the IDF to begin pulling out of Kalkilya and Tulkarm. The redeployment began after repeated statements over several days by US President Bush that Israel must begin its withdrawal "without delay."

The IDF will soon begin a staggered withdrawal from other areas in the Palestinian Authority, according to military sources. At the same time the campaign is being continued elsewhere as fierce fighting continued in Jenin, and there was a continuing standoff around the Christian churches in Bethlehem.

Hundreds of Palestinian gunmen surrendered to the IDF in Nablus Monday as the casbah at the center of the city fell. The army said it found a large bomb laboratory in the casbah. The army was searching its many tunnels and hideouts and is expected to uncover more weapons caches.

The IDF started to move into small villages and to search the countryside in search of terrorists. Over four IDF divisions are operating in the West Bank, maintaining a tight closure, patrolling roads, and guarding settlements.

Altogether about 2,000 Palestinians have been detained so far and 600 of them were later released. About 500 of those detained were wanted for involvement in terrorist attacks, and about 70 are senior terrorists, according to military sources.

Two Golani Brigade soldiers were killed in Jenin. The fallen soldiers were identified as St.-Sgt. Matanya Robinson, 21, of Kibbutz Tirat Tzvi, affiliated with the Mizrachi movement, and Sgt. Shmuel Weiss, 19, of Kiryat Arba. Four soldiers were wounded in Jenin, including one severely.

Scores of Palestinian gunmen, believed to be mostly members of Islamic Jihad, and an unknown number of civilians, were holed up there and were refusing all efforts to get them to surrender.

Fighting has been fierce in Jenin and efforts to clear out the camp have cost the IDF dearly. Nachal and reserve units were also participating in the battle. The army brought in bulldozers to level some structures. The Palestinians set off dozens of homemade bombs during the day and reportedly knocked out one of the armored bulldozers.

"There will be very many dead. Scores. It could be more than 100," an army spokesman said. The army said it had tried to arrange a cease-fire with the gunmen to remove bodies, but the gunman refused.

"These are suiciders and terrorists who are doing everything they can to harm IDF soldiers," said Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Shaul Mofaz.

"The fighting in the Jenin refugee camp was different than in the Nablus casbah, and they were both different from anything we have seen until now," said a senior IDF officer.

In his address to the Knesset on Monday about the situation, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon issued a plea to "responsible and moderate" Arab leaders to accept an invitation to meet with him to discuss a framework for Middle East peace.

Sharon said the US must serve as the coordinator of such an effort, and he would "go anywhere, without preconditions from any side, to talk about peace."

Sharon said the recent wave of suicide bombings had been delivered by Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat -- the person who "promised in a series of agreements" to abandon terror and to fight against it. "He has broken all of his promises," Sharon said.

Sharon said he doubts there is a chance to "jump directly from a violent struggle to a permanent settlement." He therefore proposed steps be made toward comprehensive Middle East peace by first advancing toward a "long-term interim arrangement" that will determine the form of neighborly relations between Israel and the Palestinians.

During the interim stage, he said the Palestinians can rebuild their society and economy and prepare for peaceful relations and the establishment of permanent borders.

In a message to the Palestinian people, Sharon said Israel does not have a war with them, and wants to see them live in peace. "Your fate is in your hands," he said.

He also said every time Israel has extended a hand of peace to Arafat and pulled back its forces, it was met with more terror attacks. He added Israel had accepted the Mitchell Report, even though it "entails painful concessions," gave up on seven days of nonviolence, and cooperated with the efforts of UN envoy Anthony Zinni. Arafat, for his part, has rejected all of Zinni's proposals, Sharon added.

Meanwhile, in the north of Israel, Hizbullah terrorists continue their shooting at IDF outposts in the Mount Dov region slowly crossing more and more military lines. IDF gunners respond with heavy artillery fire and IAF planes bomb suspected Hizbullah targets.

The attacks were broadcast live by Hizbullah's Manar television station, indicating pre-planning.

The latest attacks followed the widespread bombardments by Hizbullah Sunday night in which seven soldiers -- including five women -- were wounded.

The IDF blamed the deterioration on the Lebanese government and Syria, the controlling power in Lebanon.

If the escalation by Hizbullah and Palestinian terrorist groups continues, the IDF will have to respond more extensively, though this is what Hizbullah apparently is seeking.

"Hizbullah in the past few days, in an effort to deflect the IDF from its main mission, has initiated a series of incidents in the North, even up to opening a second front," said General Mofaz.

He stressed that the IDF has more than sufficient forces to deal with the situation in the North, and everything necessary would be done to protect residents in the region.

Brig.-Gen. Shuki Shihor, chief of staff of Northern Command, told a press conference Hizbullah has placed thousands of missiles along the northern border capable of reaching Zichron Yaakov, some 30 kilometers south of Haifa.

 

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