GAZA, 27 December — An Israeli helicopter gunship killed a Palestinian in the West Bank yesterday as Israel admitted its relations with the Palestinian Authority have reached their nadir. "Chances for peace have reached the lowest point, the zero point, in relations between the Palestinian authorities and Israel," Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said during a visit to Ukraine.
Israeli and Palestinian security officials held talks on the Gaza Strip border at which a senior Palestinian security official said they had agreed to repair Gaza international airport which had been damaged by Israeli troops.
The official, Maj. Gen. Abdel-Razek Al-Majaydeh, also said Israel agreed to extend the hours of the Rafah border crossing to Egypt and ease curbs on Gazan workers and merchants entering Israel.
Palestinian ambulance workers said a Palestinian civilian was killed by fire from an Israeli helicopter gunship on the outskirts of the West Bank town of Jenin as the army fought Palestinians nearby. Israeli military sources said helicopters shot at two Palestinians who were involved in the exchange of fire, hitting one of them. Palestinian witnesses and ambulance workers said the gunbattle erupted after Israeli tanks entered a residential area and drew Palestinian fire. They said four other Palestinian civilians were wounded by Israeli fire.
In a separate West Bank incident, about 300 Israeli soldiers entered the Palestinian village of Azzoun and arrested 18 men in a house-to-house search, Palestinian sources said. The Israeli army said it arrested 17 Palestinians "suspected of hostile activity". Besides arresting Fatah activists, it also detained members of the Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
