Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said yesterday that Israel might step up military operations in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in retaliation for a wave of Palestinian suicide bombings.
But in separate remarks published yesterday, Sharon told Newsweek magazine that he would not target Yasser Arafat, countering speculation that Israel's military reprisals aim to topple the Palestinian leader or his Palestinian Authority.
Speaking to reporters shortly after a Palestinian suicide bomber blew himself up near the northern city of Haifa, Sharon said that, "We have not finished our operations. In light of what is happening, we may have to step up our activities."
At least eight people were injured in yesterday's blast near a hitchhiking post crowded with soldiers returning to their bases.
Sharon told Newsweek in remarks released on the US magazine's Web site that several members of his cabinet demanded "that the collapse of [Arafat's] Palestinian Authority should be brought about" after three Palestinian suicide bombers killed 26 people in Jerusalem and Haifa early in December. Asked whether Israel would get rid of Arafat, Sharon said: "We don't have to do it. We are not going to act against Arafat personally."
Israel responded to the bombings by declaring the Palestinian Authority a "terror-supporting entity" and unleashing a barrage of air strikes against Palestinian security installations and symbols of power.
Israel says the operations are meant to pressure Arafat to round up militants behind attacks. Palestinians say it is a declaration of war and that the actions have hampered their forces in carrying out a crackdown.
RSS