Ha'aretz

IDF pounds PA targets across West Bank, Gaza

Israel severs ties with PA, while U.S. reaffirms Arafat as leader

By Amos Harel, Nathan Guttman and Aluf Benn

Israel launched its fiercest attack yet on Palestinian targets yesterday, as a cabinet decision to sever ties with the Palestinian Authority aroused international consternation.

The cabinet decision, issued early yesterday morning after a late-night meeting called in response to Wednesday's deadly terror attack near Emmanuel, states that "[PA Chairman Yasser] Arafat is no longer relevant as far as Israel is concerned and there will be no more contact with him."

The IDF's operations yesterday included a major penetration by ground forces into the center of Ramallah, with tanks reaching a point a mere few hundred meters away from Arafat's office. In Ramallah, the IDF took over the house of a senior Fatah leader, Marwan Barghouti. It also destroyed the antenna of the Palestinian broadcasting station and occupied the station building, but failed to stop radio broadcasts for more than a few hours.

Two Palestinians were killed and about 30 wounded in yesterday's operations. Palestinians said the wounded included six children in Rafah.

Defense sources said that additional ground and air attacks are expected in the near future, but the IDF will consider reducing the scope of its operations during the Id al Fitr holiday, which begins this weekend.

The PA said that the attacks, coupled with the cabinet decision, were a declaration of war, while Egypt and the Arab League said the decision to sever ties with the PA showed that Israel was not committed to peace.

Other world leaders did not go that far, but were clearly upset by the cabinet's decision.

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell directed two American envoys in the region to seek an explanation of the decision from Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Speaking at a news conference, Powell said the U.S. could not impose constraints on Israel, and that he would reserve judgment on Sharon's move until he receives a report from U.S. mediator Anthony Zinni and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Kurtzer.

However, he reiterated that Arafat is the Palestinians' elected leader and that the U.S. would therefore continue to work with him. He also denied reports that he had urged the Europeans to shun Arafat.

The European Union similarly stressed that it continues to view Arafat as the Palestinians' chosen leader.

Zinni met with Sharon last night. Unusually, Sharon's office declined to comment on the contents of the discussion, but a U.S. official said that one question he was trying to clarify was whether the Israeli ban included indirect contacts with the Palestinians using Zinni as a conduit.

Despite its opposition to Israel's decision, however, the international community also stressed yesterday that Arafat must do more to halt terror.

"We stress it's absolutely imperative that Chairman Arafat and the Palestinian Authority act immediately, undertake all possible measures to pursue and apprehend those responsible for these horrific actions, and ensure that the organizations responsible are unable to commit further terror," State Department Spokesman Richard Boucher said.

"We're deeply troubled by the fact that these groups continue to have freedom to conduct their actions."

Powell added that Hamas, which has claimed responsibility for most of the recent deadly attacks, "will not destroy Israel. But it might destroy Arafat and the Palestinian Authority."

And UN Middle East envoy Terje Roed-Larsen, in an interview with CNN, said that while he thinks "we are as close as we've ever been to a full military confrontation between Israel and the Palestinian Authority," the PA "has to take moves in order to save itself first" before the world can act - specifically, moves to clamp down on "terrorist militias."

IDF sources said that Arafat's lack of action on terror was highlighted by the fact that two senior Hamas activists from Nablus, who have been on Israel's wanted list for some time, were responsible for Wednesday's attack near Emmanuel. The two were on the list of 33 wanted terrorists that Israel transferred to the PA via U.S. envoy Anthony Zinni two weeks ago, but were not arrested.

For the time being, Zinni intends to continue his mediation efforts here. Yesterday, he met with IDF Chief of Staff Shaul Mofaz and senior Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, and today he will meet with other international envoys to the region to coordinate steps.

-- Anonymous, December 14, 2001