Israelis Fire On Militants

[David]

AP


An Israeli aircraft on Wednesday fired at a group of Hamas militants who were preparing to shoot mortar shells at a Jewish settlement, the army and witnesses said, the first such airstrike since a fragile cease-fire was declared in February.

The Israeli strike, combined with a recent increase in militant attacks on Gaza settlements, strained the truce and threatened to derail efforts to restart peace moves.

In other developments:


Palestinian witnesses said Israeli soldiers shot and killed a Palestinian militant at the edge of the Rafah refugee camp in Gaza. Residents said they heard an explosion, and then a gunshot, which killed Ahmed Barhoum, 22, a Hamas member.


Two days after hundreds of young activists blocked dozens of highways, Vice Premier Shimon Peres warned that Israeli police will take a harsher response against Gaza pullout protesters if the demonstrations continue.


On Wednesday, the Settler Rabbis Council issued a statement encouraging the demonstrators in what they called a "holy war." "We give our support the thousands of protesters and hundreds of detainees who took part in the nonviolent protests against the expulsion decrees and destruction," the statement said.


A Palestinian court early Wednesday ordered a new vote in three of the 14 polling stations in local elections in the southern Gaza town of Rafah. The decision accepted claims by the ruling Fatah Party of irregularities at the hands of rival Hamas. Hamas did well in three rounds of local voting, forecasting a good showing in parliamentary elections set for July 17.

The airstrike came minutes after militants had fired four mortar shells at the Gush Katif settlement bloc. The army said it spotted two Palestinians preparing to fire more mortars when it attacked.

Hamas said one of its members was critically wounded while conducting a "holy mission."

Israel had not responded to a barrage of recent mortar and rocket attacks aimed at the settlements in recent weeks, prompting strong criticism from the residents, who said the government was leaving them defenseless.

The government had said it would retaliate against militants who attacked as it prepares to withdraw from Gaza this summer, Israeli government spokesman Raanan Gissin said.

"What do you expect us to do if they are attacking us," he said, adding that part of the truce agreement allowed Israel to respond to attacks from Palestinian areas if the Palestinian security forces themselves are doing nothing to prevent the violence.

Evacuation of all 21 Gaza settlements and four in the West Bank would be the first time Israel has ever removed established settlements from those areas after nearly four decades of construction and expansion.

Earlier this week, Israeli police scuffled with protesters and arrested more than 300, the largest round of arrests since protests against the planned withdrawal from Gaza began several months ago.

However, Peres said police would use more forceful measures against them.

"The police are trying to do things as gently as possible. If there will be an escalation in protests, I believe there will be an escalation in the response," Peres told Israel Radio.

Peres said in the future police would use riot control gear such as water cannons.

Protesters have said they would not be deterred by arrests and jail time.

During Tuesday's court hearings, young supporters of the detainees, most of them teenagers with large skullcaps and ritual fringes identifying them as Orthodox Jews, sang and danced outside the courtrooms, encouraging their friends as they were taken inside, many in handcuffs.

Extra judges were brought in to handle hearings for more than 300 protesters. Police agreed to release about 130 with a ban on similar protests for 60 days.The protest ban would expire in mid-July, just as the activists move into high gear in their drive to scuttle the pullout.

Organizers called the road blocking a success, noting that they tied up thousands of police. In August, they believe, diverting such large numbers from Gaza would cause cancelation of the evacuation.

Israel's new Shin Bet security chief, Yuval Diskin, warned that the pullout could lead to "Jewish terrorism," according to Israeli media. Diskin was addressing a closed session of the parliament's Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee.

On Tuesday, Sharon toured sites where the 8,500 Gaza settlers are to be moved after their evacuation from Gaza ? several small villages in the Negev Desert, not far from Gaza, and the coastal area of Nitzanim, the main site. He ordered construction teams to speed up their work so that the new housing will be ready in time.

Pounding on the hood of a vehicle, he implored, "There's not a minute to spare. You keep discussing, you keep requesting, you keep consulting. We've agreed on this ? (now) get to work!"

Though militant settler leaders are trying to present a united front against the pullout, promising strong nonviolent resistance, a major crack in the facade appeared on Tuesday when a settler official said that about one-quarter of the 1,600 Gaza settler families have signed up for new housing in Israel.