The IDF combat engineering corps destroyed no more than 13 buildings on the Israeli-Egyptian border overnight near Rafiah. The IDF spokesman said that the uninhabited buildings served as PLO sniper positions and as cover for underground tunnels used by the terrorists for smuggling arms and ammunition from Egypt into the PLO areas. During the IDF action, which was carried out in an area under full Israeli jurisdiction, PLO forces opened fire and threw grenades at the engineering unit. There were no injuries, and the soldiers returned fire.
In Ramallah, Knesset members Muhammad Barakeh (Hadash), Ahmed Tibi (Ta-al) and former minister Shulamit Aloni (Meretz) met with Yasser Arafat and heard his reaction to last night\'s IDF operation. The PLO leader claimed that the Israelis are “escalating the situation and doing all that they can to collapse the Palestinian Authority.” Arafat called the IDF operations in Gaza today, which came in retaliation for yesterday’s killing of four Israeli soldiers, “a crime against humanity.”
In the CNN interview, Congressman Ackerman was asked if the IDF retaliation was “provocative.” Ackerman responded, “I think that… is a crock of crap… It’s like saying that the Americans should not respond to al-Qaeda’s attack on the Twin Towers in New York… It’s a bunch of baloney. When somebody attacks you, the way you deter it is by attacking back to teach people that they shouldn\'t do those things. People who don\'t like the hitting back, shouldn\'t hit, and then they won\'t get a reaction… The Israeli reaction [targeted] the place from where the terrorists came who caused the death of four Israelis… The people who took credit for it came from that area, and the Israelis responded in kind. ‘If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime.’”
PLO representative Saeb Erekat, also speaking on CNN, found it ironic that an American lawmaker is being “more Israeli than the Israelis.” Erekat noted that the congressman “condoned Israeli actions” and canceled meetings with PLO leaders precisely at a time when Erekat is meeting with Knesset Chairman Avraham Burg and other Israeli lawmakers in South Africa, in order to “discuss ways to get Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.\"
Speaking on Voice of Palestine radio, PLO commander Jabril Rajoub said this morning that yesterday\'s killing of 4 IDF soldiers is a \"natural response\" to Israel\'s policies. According to reports from Israel intelligence, Rajoub and Mohammed Dahlan have themselves been involved in intensive arms smuggling for the past few weeks.
In Ramallah, Knesset members Muhammad Barakeh (Hadash), Ahmed Tibi (Ta-al) and former minister Shulamit Aloni (Meretz) met with Yasser Arafat and heard his reaction to last night\'s IDF operation. The PLO leader claimed that the Israelis are “escalating the situation and doing all that they can to collapse the Palestinian Authority.” Arafat called the IDF operations in Gaza today, which came in retaliation for yesterday’s killing of four Israeli soldiers, “a crime against humanity.”
In the CNN interview, Congressman Ackerman was asked if the IDF retaliation was “provocative.” Ackerman responded, “I think that… is a crock of crap… It’s like saying that the Americans should not respond to al-Qaeda’s attack on the Twin Towers in New York… It’s a bunch of baloney. When somebody attacks you, the way you deter it is by attacking back to teach people that they shouldn\'t do those things. People who don\'t like the hitting back, shouldn\'t hit, and then they won\'t get a reaction… The Israeli reaction [targeted] the place from where the terrorists came who caused the death of four Israelis… The people who took credit for it came from that area, and the Israelis responded in kind. ‘If you can’t do the time, don’t do the crime.’”
PLO representative Saeb Erekat, also speaking on CNN, found it ironic that an American lawmaker is being “more Israeli than the Israelis.” Erekat noted that the congressman “condoned Israeli actions” and canceled meetings with PLO leaders precisely at a time when Erekat is meeting with Knesset Chairman Avraham Burg and other Israeli lawmakers in South Africa, in order to “discuss ways to get Israelis and Palestinians back to the negotiating table.\"
Speaking on Voice of Palestine radio, PLO commander Jabril Rajoub said this morning that yesterday\'s killing of 4 IDF soldiers is a \"natural response\" to Israel\'s policies. According to reports from Israel intelligence, Rajoub and Mohammed Dahlan have themselves been involved in intensive arms smuggling for the past few weeks.