RAMALLAH, West Bank, 20 August — Palestinian groups rejected yesterday a new deal to ease Israel’s military clampdown in the Gaza Strip and Bethlehem in return for a reduction of violence as Israeli forces charged into the towns of Nablus and Jenin, triggering clashes that left a Palestinian man critically injured.
A 13-year-old Palestinian boy was also shot dead by Israeli fire in Burqin near Jenin, as Israeli armor moved into a village. The raids came as Israel vowed to continue its crackdown on Palestinians.
In Ramallah, plainclothes Israeli forces, backed by army jeeps and armored personnel carriers, drove up to a Palestinian police station and arrested four officers, as well as Ala Alnamneh and Bassem Aref, who witnesses said belonged to the Al-Aqsa Martyr Brigades.
Israeli Communications Minister Reuven Rivlin said yesterday that despite an accord with the Palestinians for a partial Israeli pullback, the army would not be dropping its fight against activists in the territories.
“It should be clear that the absolute minimum condition for progress toward a solution is to follow the plan of President Bush, which calls for a new Palestinian leadership to emerge,” he said. US has wecomed the Gaza First deal.
Islamic Jihad yesterday vowed to step up attacks on Israeli targets. “The Palestinian people’s answer will be to escalate the resistance to foil (Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin) Ben Eliezer’s plan,” said Khalid El-Batsh, a Gaza Strip leader of the Palestinian group.
“We in Islamic Jihad reject this agreement because it will consecrate the Israeli occupation of our land,” he told AFP.
“This accord aims to destroy the intifada,” he said, referring to the deal drawn up between Ben-Eliezer and Palestinian Interior Minister Abdel Razaq Al-Yahya late Sunday to implement a plan for Israel to gradually quit reoccupied areas if Palestinian security reined in hard-liners.
Batsh said the accord would only serve to deepen division between Palestinian factions, who have been locked into talks for weeks to work out a united position on the 23-month-long uprising.
The Hamas movement also dismissed the agreement between Israeli and Palestinian leaders.
Hamas said it would continue to attack Israel, which was the condition Israel demanded from Palestinian authorities in return for the partial withdrawal.
The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine also rejected the agreement and vowed to mount attacks against Israel.
Meanwhile, about 100 armed Palestinian policemen arrived in Bethlehem yesterday to take control of the West Bank town as part of the Gaza First plan, Palestinian officials in the town told AFP.
Israeli soldiers were reportedly withdrawing from Bethlehem and several neighboring areas.
