Widening its five-day campaign against Palestinian militants, Israel for the first time fired artillery shells into the Gaza Strip yesterday and shut down 15 West Bank offices suspected of distributing money to families of suicide bombers from the Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups.
Israeli aircraft also fired missiles at several Gaza targets, knocking out power in Gaza City for most of the night, damaging several buildings and destroying an overpass, but there were no injuries. In the West Bank, Israel rounded up 24 suspected militants, bringing the number of people arrested since the weekend to more than 400.
In other developments, an adviser to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and an Israeli Cabinet minister said yesterday that Israel could withdraw from some parts of the West Bank and annex others to its territory if peace efforts remain bogged down. The comments by adviser Eyal Arad and Cabinet Minister Tzahi Hanegbi on Israel Army Radio marked the first time two confidants of the prime minister talked in public about the idea of additional unilateral moves by Israel, after the Gaza pullout that was completed in the middle of this month. Sharon's office said it remained committed to a negotiated peace deal with the Palestinians.
PHOTO: AP
The Israeli strikes were triggered by weekend rocket fire from Gaza at Israeli border towns. Since then, Hamas and Islamic Jihad have announced they would halt attacks, but Israel said it would press ahead with the campaign, including targeted killings of militant leaders. On Tuesday, Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz threatened Hamas leaders Mahmoud Zahar and Ismail Hanieh by name, saying they could be the next targets.
Israel says the strong reaction is necessary to show that new rules are in place following its withdrawal from Gaza, after a 38-year occupation, and that attacks from the area won't be tolerated.
"Terrorism must be rooted out," Vice Premier Shimon Peres told Israel Radio yesterday.
However, Israel also appears to be seizing an opportunity to deliver a major blow to Hamas, which had been largely off-limits after it agreed in February to abide by an informal truce. Israel has repeatedly demanded that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas disarm Hamas, but Abbas has chosen to co-opt the militants instead.
Hamas charged that Israel is also trying to weaken the group politically before the Palestinian parliamentary elections in January. Among those rounded up in recent days were dozens of Hamas candidates for parliament and local councils. Hamas is expected to make a strong showing in the parliamentary vote and in a new round of local elections -- the third of four -- to be held in more than 100 towns and villages today.
In a new phase of Israel's offensive, troops closed down 15 offices, including charities linked to local mosques, across the West Bank yesterday, the military said. Israel said money for the families of suicide bombers and militants jailed by Israel was distributed through these offices.
The military activity came after various Palestinian factions, including Hamas and the ruling Fatah movement, renewed their commitment to a ceasefire, although they also said they reserved the right to retaliate for perceived Israeli truce violations. As the militants were meeting, a rocket landed in the southern Israeli town of Sderot, causing no damage or injuries, the army said. No one claimed responsibility for the attack.
Captain Yael Hartmann, a spokeswoman for the Israeli army, called the militants' pledges "meaningless" and said the open-ended military operation would continue.
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