Friday, August 8, 2003
The Associated Press - Israel Troops Raid Hamas Bomb Lab; 4 Dead By MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH
The firefight in the Askar refugee camp, where Israeli troops also shot and killed a Palestinian protester outside the suspected bomb lab, came as an Israeli official said the course of a security barrier might be altered to encompass less West Bank land than initially planned...
Friday's gunbattle in the Askar refugee camp, next to the northern West Bank city of Nablus, was not expected to derail a cease-fire declared by the main Palestinian groups June 29, although a Hamas leader said the raid violated the truce.
The incident began before dawn, when soldiers surrounded a Hamas hideout in Askar to arrest two suspected Hamas bombmakers, Khamis Abu Salem and Fayez Sadder, said Col. Arieh Knafo, who commanded the raid.
As the soldiers approached, they were shot at from inside the three-story apartment building. An Israeli soldier, 20-year-old Roi Oren, was killed.
Soldiers returned fire, killing one Hamas activist. At one point, an explosion went off, bringing down most of the building and the second Hamas fugitive was buried under the rubble, the colonel told The Associated Press.
A third Palestinian, Mohammed Dak, 20 died later of gunshot wounds, a local hospital said. Witnesses said he was hit when soldiers shot at Palestinian stone-throwers outside the suspected bomb lab.
Israeli troops later blew up the remainder of the building. The lab had contained dozens of kilograms of explosives, the colonel said. He denied initial reports that troops fired an anti-tank missile at the building, saying two tanks were on standby, but did not fire.
In the Gaza Strip, Hamas official Ismail Abu Shanab said Israel violated the cease-fire, but stopped short of saying Hamas - which has carried out scores of suicide bombing attacks against Israelis - would call off the truce. "The Israelis should bear responsibility for this attack and all of its consequences," Abu Shanab said...
Impression: The Israelis killed an "activist." Har. The article spends much time talking about the security fence which seems tangential at best, and also quotes Palestinians saying the incident violates the "ceasefire," which is absurd, since Israel isn't part of the hudna and has never said it would stop taking action against terrorists.
