IDF forces, numbering tanks and thousands of troops, continue to occupy the entire city of Ramallah, except for the area near Arafat\'s compound. They are continuing their house-to-house searches for wanted terrorists, arms, and explosives. In battles there this morning, IDF officer Lt. Gil Badihi, 21, of Nataf (northwest of Jerusalem) suffered grave wounds at the hand of an Arab sniper, and later died in a Jerusalem hospital. Journalist Aryeh Gallin recently noted that Defense Minister Ben-Eliezer acknowledged to him that Shimon Peres, then a minister in the Barak government, agreed to allow the CIA to train 40 PA \"policemen\" in sniper shooting, marksmanship and advanced weapons use in Virginia.
Arutz-7\'s Kobi Finkler reports that the IDF forces faced heavy fire today, and that the Palestinians \"are firing on almost every tank and armored personnel carrier.\" The IDF forces took over about ten houses, including that of PA Intelligence Chief Tawfiq Tirawi. The Israeli forces discovered and destroyed over 25 metal-cutting factories for rocket-making purposes. Among the four Arabs reported killed today was the deputy commander of Arafat\'s Force 17; his men murdered at least 15 Israelis in the past months. Four IDF soldiers were wounded last night in Ramallah, and one in the Bethlehem area. More limited IDF offensives are taking place today in Dehaishe (near Bethlehem), Tul Karem, and in Gaza.
The Ramallah area was declared a closed military zone, and it was explained to international reporters yesterday that this was being done for their protection. The death of an Italian reporter from battle fire is therefore now under investigation. Two other reporters, from France and Egypt, were also wounded during the battles.
The PA called on its residents to intensify the fighting against the IDF forces, and not to adhere to IDF instructions. Voice of Israel reporter Avi Yisacharov reported that the Palestinians were infuriated by these calls, complaining that the PA forces themselves are not fighting the IDF, but are rather hiding out in the Arafat compound - \"a luxury that the regular people don\'t have.\" In this connection, Arafat \"warned\" Israel today, \"I haven\'t yet instructed the Palestinian Authority security forces to respond to the IDF attacks, but my patience is running out.\" As noted, the compound housing the offices of Arafat and his security forces and adjacent areas of a few hundred meters are the only spots in Ramallah not currently under IDF control.
Col. Gal Hirsch, operations officer of the Central Command, said that in southern Ramallah\'s El Amari neighborhood, for example, \"several bomb factories were found, along with bombs, machine guns, rifles, pistols and a huge cache of ammunition.\" Hirsch said that the IDF\'s purpose is \"not to act against the PA, but against the terrorist infrastructure,\" and that even though Israel warned the PA and the Palestinian police not to fight back, the PA still put up resistance. \"All Palestinian security organizations, which were given arms by Israel for defense purposes, are part of the terrorist infrastructure that fights against Israel,\" he told reporters. Hundreds of weapons were uncovered, \"along with explosives and about 10-20 weapon-making laboratories. Every few hours we find another one. We have so far found over 20 Kassam missiles... As for arrests, initially hundreds of suspects were arrested and questioned, but the majority was then released. Dozens of terrorists, those at the core of terrorism in these camps, were detained and are now under investigation.\"
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer ordered the IDF to stop the Ramallah offensive this morning - but was forced to rescind in the face of strong opposition by Prime Minister Sharon. Sharon demanded a government vote on the matter, but Ben-Eliezer threatened to quit the government if the vote was held. The two exchanged yells, then consulted privately and decided to continue the Ramallah offensive until a cease-fire was achieved.
Arutz-7\'s Kobi Finkler reports that the IDF forces faced heavy fire today, and that the Palestinians \"are firing on almost every tank and armored personnel carrier.\" The IDF forces took over about ten houses, including that of PA Intelligence Chief Tawfiq Tirawi. The Israeli forces discovered and destroyed over 25 metal-cutting factories for rocket-making purposes. Among the four Arabs reported killed today was the deputy commander of Arafat\'s Force 17; his men murdered at least 15 Israelis in the past months. Four IDF soldiers were wounded last night in Ramallah, and one in the Bethlehem area. More limited IDF offensives are taking place today in Dehaishe (near Bethlehem), Tul Karem, and in Gaza.
The Ramallah area was declared a closed military zone, and it was explained to international reporters yesterday that this was being done for their protection. The death of an Italian reporter from battle fire is therefore now under investigation. Two other reporters, from France and Egypt, were also wounded during the battles.
The PA called on its residents to intensify the fighting against the IDF forces, and not to adhere to IDF instructions. Voice of Israel reporter Avi Yisacharov reported that the Palestinians were infuriated by these calls, complaining that the PA forces themselves are not fighting the IDF, but are rather hiding out in the Arafat compound - \"a luxury that the regular people don\'t have.\" In this connection, Arafat \"warned\" Israel today, \"I haven\'t yet instructed the Palestinian Authority security forces to respond to the IDF attacks, but my patience is running out.\" As noted, the compound housing the offices of Arafat and his security forces and adjacent areas of a few hundred meters are the only spots in Ramallah not currently under IDF control.
Col. Gal Hirsch, operations officer of the Central Command, said that in southern Ramallah\'s El Amari neighborhood, for example, \"several bomb factories were found, along with bombs, machine guns, rifles, pistols and a huge cache of ammunition.\" Hirsch said that the IDF\'s purpose is \"not to act against the PA, but against the terrorist infrastructure,\" and that even though Israel warned the PA and the Palestinian police not to fight back, the PA still put up resistance. \"All Palestinian security organizations, which were given arms by Israel for defense purposes, are part of the terrorist infrastructure that fights against Israel,\" he told reporters. Hundreds of weapons were uncovered, \"along with explosives and about 10-20 weapon-making laboratories. Every few hours we find another one. We have so far found over 20 Kassam missiles... As for arrests, initially hundreds of suspects were arrested and questioned, but the majority was then released. Dozens of terrorists, those at the core of terrorism in these camps, were detained and are now under investigation.\"
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer ordered the IDF to stop the Ramallah offensive this morning - but was forced to rescind in the face of strong opposition by Prime Minister Sharon. Sharon demanded a government vote on the matter, but Ben-Eliezer threatened to quit the government if the vote was held. The two exchanged yells, then consulted privately and decided to continue the Ramallah offensive until a cease-fire was achieved.