Israeli troops invaded Palestinian areas in Hebron Friday morning, killing six Palestinians and wounding more than 50 others, Palestinian sources said.
Israeli troops' invasion, apparently aimed at stemming shooting at Jewish neighborhoods, has prompted exchange of gunfire with Palestinians in the West Bank city, Israel Radio quoted the sources as saying.
Over the past few days, Palestinian gunmen fired at Jewish neighborhoods in Hebron, injuring two Israeli women when thousands of people were celebrating the Sukkot holiday (Feast of Tabernacles) near the holy site of Cave of the Patriarchs.
Israeli troops entered the Palestinian neighborhoods of Abu Sneina and Khart a-Sheikh Thursday night and demolished a number of buildings, from which Palestinian gunmen opened fire.
Hebron is a divided city, which is home to about 400 Israeli settlers and 120,000 Palestinians. According to agreements signed between Israel and the Palestinians, the Palestinian National Authority controls 80 percent of the city.
(Xinhua News Agency 10/06/2001)
