RAMALLAH, West Bank (KRT)– Hunting house to house for suspected terrorists, Israeli troops took control of an entire Palestinian city Monday for the first time in the current 16-month intifada as Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat voiced defiance from his besieged headquarters in Ramallah.
The army said its incursion into the West Bank town of Tulkarem was to hunt for the perpetrators of a deadly shooting attack last week at a bat mitzvah in the Israeli town of Hadera. Israeli troops backed by dozens of tanks engaged in sporadic gun battles with Palestinians that continued into Tuesday morning. At least two Palestinians were killed and two dozen wounded.
The army imposed a strict curfew on Tulkarem, detained a number of suspects and raised the Israeli flag over several seized buildings.
Arafat, despite being under virtual house arrest in his Ramallah headquarters, surrounded by Israeli tanks, brushed off the Tulkarem operation and the Israeli firepower that inched closer to his doorfront a few days ago. Vowing to risk his own life, he said the Palestinians would survive the current “tight spot” to eventually build their state.
“They have crossed all red lines, and our people cannot stand with their eyes closed to these Israeli attempts,” Arafat told a large group of writers and intellectuals, who were invited to his heavily guarded compound to show their solidarity with the besieged Palestinian leader. “The proof of this is the strong and firm steadfastness of our people in Tulkarem.
“The Palestinian state will be established with (East Jerusalem) as its capital. By God I see it coming, martyred or alive,” he said.
Arafat spoke with Israeli tanks sitting within 100 feet of his headquarters, their long-range guns locked in his direction. From several blocks away came the roar of Israeli machine-gun fire and the howl of ambulances, rushing to pick up wounded Palestinian demonstrators from clashes in Ramallah. One Palestinian reportedly was killed in those clashes.
While the Israeli army has repeatedly entered Palestinian cities in recent months, sometimes staying for weeks, its raid on Tulkarem was the first time it had taken control of a whole city since Palestinian self-rule began in 1994. Israeli officials said they did not plan to stay permanently, but offered no timetable for their exit.
“This is not a reoccupation,” said Lt. Gen. Shaul Mofaz, the army chief of staff. “Occupation is when you go house to house, impose military rule and ultimately stay there. We have no intention of staying forever.”
After entering the city around 3 a.m. Monday, Israeli troops arrested 10 members of the militant Islamic groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad, military officials said. Israeli officials said they had notified Palestinian officials in advance about their takeover of the city.
“We mean to arrest terrorists and prevent attacks,” said Israeli army spokesman Lt. Col. Oliver Rafovich. “After so many casualties, we had no choice but to clean up various areas.”
The military decided to go into Tulkarem, Rafovich said, after the attack last Thursday by a Palestinian gunman at a banquet hall in the nearby Israeli city of Hadera. Seven people were killed, including the attacker, and at least 30 were wounded.
Israeli newspapers have been full of stories this week about dissent within the ranks of Palestinian leadership, and the possibility that Arafat would resign. But Palestinian officials denied the rumors Monday, saying such rumors are an effort by Israel to destabilize the Palestinian leadership.
© 2002, Chicago Tribune. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.