March 29, 2002 Posted: 7:21 AM EST (1221 GMT)
New bombing as Israeli military moves on Arafat
Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades claims new attack
Emergency workers move an injured person from the
supermarket where an explosion occurred Friday.
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- As Israeli tanks laid siege to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's Ramallah headquarters on Friday, a Palestinian militant group claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing that killed a supermarket security guard in southern Jerusalem. The blast occurred at a grocery store in the neighborhood of Kiryat Yovel, police said. Israel Radio reported a female suicide bomber had set off the blast. The report also said at least two people died -- the bomber and the guard who was on duty at the front of the market. Police said at least 17 people were wounded in the attack. The Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a military wing of Arafat's Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the attack in calls to news organizations.
The firefights between Israel Defense Forces and Palestinian gunmen broke out after Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon described Arafat as "an enemy" of the country. Five Palestinians and one Israeli officer have died in fighting, sources said.
In addition, Israeli police clashed with Palestinian demonstrators
in the old city of Jerusalem near the area of the Al Aqsa Mosque, one of the
most sacred sites in Islam. Meanwhile, Sharon has announced an extended military
operation against Palestinian terrorism "everywhere it exists." "Arafat has
established a coalition of terrorism against Israel," Sharon said, shortly after
an all-night Cabinet meeting. "He is an enemy and at this stage he will be isolated."(Full
story) Israeli tanks and bulldozers began tearing down the fences and walls
surrounding the Ramallah headquarters of Arafat. He was inside at the time.
Speaking by telephone to Al Jazeera television, Arafat said he hopes the Israeli
operation will make him into a martyr. "They either want to kill me, or capture
me, or expel me," he said, speaking from his Ramallah headquarters. "I hope
I will be a martyr in the Holy Land. I have chosen this path and if I fall,
one day a Palestinian child will raise the Palestinian flag above our mosques
and churches." (Full story) Gunfire and tank fire were heard by CNN's Michael
Holmes as the situation remained "tense." "Dozens of Palestinian gunmen are
on the street. There are street battles going on, it is not just around the
compound," he added. Israeli snipers were poised on buildings outside the complex
and were shooting into the Palestinian headquarters compound, Palestinian sources
said.
Israeli tanks move toward the center of Ramallah on Friday.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said five Palestinians had been killed and 25 others wounded in the Israeli raid. An Israeli officer was also killed in the Ramallah operation, according to Israeli security sources. Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for Arafat, said: "Israel has tried twice to enter one building in the compound, but so far they have failed. We are ready to fight until the last. "We consider this a very dangerous decision ... the Israeli government is declaring war against the Palestinian people. We are under occupation." The Israeli action comes after a Palestinian suicide bombing during a Passover dinner at a Netanya hotel on Wednesday which left 21 people dead, and the killing of four settlers in a Jewish settlement near Nablus the following day. The militant wing of Hamas claimed responsibility for both terror attacks. Sharon said: "Israeli will act to extirpate Palestinian terrorism everywhere it exists. We will carry out extended operations until we achieve our goal. "All of this is happening during a period in which Israel's hand was extended in peace and Israel's hand is still extended in peace.
The Palestine Red Crescent Society said five Palestinians had been killed and 25 others wounded in the Israeli raid. An Israeli officer was also killed in the Ramallah operation, according to Israeli security sources. Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for Arafat, said: "Israel has tried twice to enter one building in the compound, but so far they have failed. We are ready to fight until the last. "We consider this a very dangerous decision ... the Israeli government is declaring war against the Palestinian people. We are under occupation." The Israeli action comes after a Palestinian suicide bombing during a Passover dinner at a Netanya hotel on Wednesday which left 21 people dead, and the killing of four settlers in a Jewish settlement near Nablus the following day. The militant wing of Hamas claimed responsibility for both terror attacks. Sharon said: "Israeli will act to extirpate Palestinian terrorism everywhere it exists. We will carry out extended operations until we achieve our goal. "All of this is happening during a period in which Israel's hand was extended in peace and Israel's hand is still extended in peace.
All 'necessary measures'
Fresh violence erupted against Israelis earlier Thursday, even as Arafat announced he was ready to implement the Tenet cease-fire. Shortly after Arafat spoke, a Palestinian gunman opened fire Thursday at the Alon Moreh Jewish settlement near Nablus, killing four settlers before Israeli forces shot him dead, the Israeli army said. Another settler was slightly wounded in the attack. Hamas, a Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist group that has been labeled by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization, claimed responsibility for the attack, saying the gunman was from the Askar refugee camp near Nablus. Hamas has carried out other attacks on Israeli military and civilian targets during the 18-month-old Intifada. After that attack, a top Israeli official said the government would use all "necessary measures" to stop further terrorist attacks. Wednesday's terror attack in Netanya came on the first night of the Jewish religious celebration of Passover during a traditional Seder at a seaside hotel. More than 170 people were wounded. (More on the bombing) A source at the Israeli Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem said Thursday that Israel had not responded to Wednesday's terror attack because the government continued to support Zinni's efforts to reach a cease-fire. "Israel will do the most it can," said the source, adding that Israel has followed a policy of retaliatory restraint for the last 10 days. During that period, the source said, Israeli authorities have intercepted 11 would-be suicide bombers.