Israeli tanks and troops stormed into Nablus and its neighboring Balata refugee camp before dawn Friday, rounding up about a hundred Palestinians, in the largest of the daily raids since its virtual occupation of most West Bank cities in April.
Even as a tentative flurry of diplomatic activity was under way in Israel the Israeli Army imposed a curfew on Nablus, took over houses for sniper posts, surrounded the Balata camp - birthplace and stronghold of Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades - and called over loudspeakers for all males between 15 and 45 to come out with their hands up.
Local reporters glimpsed hundreds of Palestinians gathered in the streets before being ordered away by the army. The army appeared ready to settle in for some time.
Israeli armored units also entered the West Bank town of Tulkarm tonight, reimposing a curfew, Palestinian witnesses and security sources told Reuters. Israeli military officials described the action as a routine patrol after a bombing alert.
Israeli officials said the raid into Nablus and the Balata camp had been staged "in the wake of recent murderous attacks," including one by a gunmen who killed three teenage Yeshiva students at a nearby settlement, nearly all of which have been claimed by Al Aksa Brigades.
The Palestinian leader, Yasir Arafat, told reporters that the raid was aimed at "bringing our people to their knees." Speaking from his headquarters in Ramallah, he added, "It's as if they are saying to the world that we do not want to reach any agreement."
In a second attack on an Israeli West Bank settlement in three days, a Palestinian cut through the wire fences around Shavei Shomron, north of Nablus, this morning and hurled hand grenades, including one at a kindergarten class, before being shot dead by settlers.
The American envoy, Assistant Secretary of State William J. Burns, saw Mr. Arafat on Thursday night, and met today with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Mr. Sharon told him that there could be no peace and no reform of the Palestinian Authority as long as Mr. Arafat was in charge.
Mr. Sharon's office issued a statement saying he had "re-emphasized Israel's position that progress in the process is conditional on the cessation of terror and incitement and on comprehensive reforms in the Palestinian Authority."
Mr. Sharon also met with Osama el-Baz, a top adviser to President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt. Mr. Baz insisted that Mr. Arafat was a reliable negotiator.
Israel also announced today the appointment of Danny Ayalon, Mr. Sharon's foreign policy adviser, as ambassador to Washington, one of the most coveted government posts.
During the raid into Nablus and Balata, the army blew up the home of Jihad Titi, the suicide bomber who killed a woman and her granddaughter on Monday in Petah Tikva. He was seeking revenge for a cousin, an Aksa leader killed by a tank shell in the camp's graveyard.
(China Daily June 1, 2002)
