Israel's official reactions thus far to the massacre:
* Two security cabinet meetings, last night and this morning, with the participation of Prime Minister Sharon, Ministers Netanyahu, Mofaz, Shalom, Landau, and others.
* A decision not to expel Arafat, nor to stop the transfer of tax monies to the Palestinian Authority.
* Combat helicopters attacked weapons-making plants in Gaza City, wounding 8.
* A ban on the convening of the PLO's Central Council this Thursday in Ramallah.
* Closure of Islamic universities in Judea and Samaria, although this had not taken effect as of this afternoon.
* A PA delegation will not be permitted to participate in an important London conference later this month (see item 4 below).
* Another massive military operation on the scale of last year's Operation Defensive Shield is *not* expected.
There have been reports that Israel has ordered foreigners to leave Ramallah and that the IDF is poised to take action in the city. Arafat's headquarters, from which he has not been allowed to leave in over a year, are located in Ramallah.
Over the past five weeks, Israel's security forces have arrested more than 1,200 terrorists and suspects throughout Judea, Samaria and Gaza, and thwarted dozens of attacks. The Shabak (General Security Service) deals with an average of 50-60 terrorist warnings each week.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, of Arafat's Fatah, took credit for yesterday's attack last night, but the organization retracted the claim this morning. Arafat's forces even arrested the Al-Jazeera correspondent who first publicized the original credit-claiming statement. Brig.-Gen. Yossi Kuperwasser, of the IDF Intelligence Wing, confirmed today that the attack was perpetrated by the Fatah's Al-Aksa Brigades - the same group that carried out the recent murders in Kibbutz Metzer, Beit She'an, and Kfar Saba.
IDF actions last night:
Islamic Jihad terrorist Hassan Abu Armana, responsible for the murder of Rabbi Yitzchak Aramah of Netzer Hazani, was arrested - while he was watching Israeli television coverage of yesterday's attack - and the forces demolished his house. Seven other terrorists were also arrested in Gaza. Seventeen terrorist suspects were captured in Bethlehem and 20 in Shechem, and two Islamic Jihad terrorists involved in murdering four yeshiva students in Otniel last week were apprehended near Hevron. In Ramallah, a leading Islamic Jihad terrorist was captured early this afternoon.
Arabs attacked IDF soldiers in Shechem in two incidents this afternoon, but no one was hurt... Hizbullah fired anti-aircraft fire at Israel Air Force jets twice this afternoon. The incidents occurred in the western Galilee, near the northern border. Shrapnel fell in Shlomi, but no one was hurt, and the IDF did not return fire.
* Two security cabinet meetings, last night and this morning, with the participation of Prime Minister Sharon, Ministers Netanyahu, Mofaz, Shalom, Landau, and others.
* A decision not to expel Arafat, nor to stop the transfer of tax monies to the Palestinian Authority.
* Combat helicopters attacked weapons-making plants in Gaza City, wounding 8.
* A ban on the convening of the PLO's Central Council this Thursday in Ramallah.
* Closure of Islamic universities in Judea and Samaria, although this had not taken effect as of this afternoon.
* A PA delegation will not be permitted to participate in an important London conference later this month (see item 4 below).
* Another massive military operation on the scale of last year's Operation Defensive Shield is *not* expected.
There have been reports that Israel has ordered foreigners to leave Ramallah and that the IDF is poised to take action in the city. Arafat's headquarters, from which he has not been allowed to leave in over a year, are located in Ramallah.
Over the past five weeks, Israel's security forces have arrested more than 1,200 terrorists and suspects throughout Judea, Samaria and Gaza, and thwarted dozens of attacks. The Shabak (General Security Service) deals with an average of 50-60 terrorist warnings each week.
The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, of Arafat's Fatah, took credit for yesterday's attack last night, but the organization retracted the claim this morning. Arafat's forces even arrested the Al-Jazeera correspondent who first publicized the original credit-claiming statement. Brig.-Gen. Yossi Kuperwasser, of the IDF Intelligence Wing, confirmed today that the attack was perpetrated by the Fatah's Al-Aksa Brigades - the same group that carried out the recent murders in Kibbutz Metzer, Beit She'an, and Kfar Saba.
IDF actions last night:
Islamic Jihad terrorist Hassan Abu Armana, responsible for the murder of Rabbi Yitzchak Aramah of Netzer Hazani, was arrested - while he was watching Israeli television coverage of yesterday's attack - and the forces demolished his house. Seven other terrorists were also arrested in Gaza. Seventeen terrorist suspects were captured in Bethlehem and 20 in Shechem, and two Islamic Jihad terrorists involved in murdering four yeshiva students in Otniel last week were apprehended near Hevron. In Ramallah, a leading Islamic Jihad terrorist was captured early this afternoon.
Arabs attacked IDF soldiers in Shechem in two incidents this afternoon, but no one was hurt... Hizbullah fired anti-aircraft fire at Israel Air Force jets twice this afternoon. The incidents occurred in the western Galilee, near the northern border. Shrapnel fell in Shlomi, but no one was hurt, and the IDF did not return fire.