GAZA CITY, 24 September 2004 — Three Palestinians raided an Israeli Army post at dawn yesterday and killed three Israeli soldiers before they were killed themselves. The attack on the outpost guarding the Morag settlement in southern Gaza came a day after a 19-year-old Palestinian woman, Zainab Abu Salem, blew herself up at a crowded Jerusalem bus stop, killing two officers of the paramilitary border police.
Heavy fog in southern Gaza made it possible for three attackers to enter the army post. A gunbattle erupted at about 6 a.m. and lasted for about 45 minutes, said Nissim Bracha, a Morag resident.
Three Israeli soldiers were killed and a fourth was critically wounded, the army said. Two gunmen were killed in the gunbattle and a third escaped, the army said. Two AK-47 assault rifles were found on the body of the two gunmen.
Several hours later, the third gunman opened fire as journalists were touring the site. A reporter from the Yediot Ahronot daily was wounded in the thigh, medics said.
The army said the journalist was wounded as an army commander briefed the media on the earlier incident. The journalist was given first aid by the commander, the army said. The third gunman was killed after a 30-minute shootout.
In a phone call to The Associated Press, three groups claimed joint responsibility for the attack on the army post. The caller said the gunmen were from Islamic Jihad, the Popular Resistance Committees — an umbrella group of Palestinian factions — and the Ahmed Abu El-Rish Brigades, a group with ties to Fatah.
Palestinian sources named the three dead men as 22-year-old Mohammed El-Azazi from Rafah, Yussef Amr, 19, from Gaza City, and Imad Abu Samhadana, 21, who was also from Rafah.
A spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, who used the nom de guerre Abu Abir, said the plan was for two gunmen to engage soldiers in a battle, while a third planted a series of bombs to be detonated at an Israeli military convoy. But when the soldiers found the third gunman hiding near the greenhouses they prevented the bombs from being set, Abu Abir said.
The attack comes as Prime Minister Ariel Sharon faces mounting opposition to his plan to withdraw from all Gaza Strip and four West Bank settlements by September 2005. Morag is one of the first settlements marked for evacuation. The army said one of the soldiers who was killed was from Neve Dekalim, another Gaza settlement.
In an interview with Israeli television on Wednesday, Sharon said the pullout would begin in the summer of 2005 and would take about 12 weeks. Under the plan, all 21 Gaza settlements and four in the West Bank will be dismantled.
Since Sharon announced his withdrawal plan in December, Palestinian hard-line groups have increased attacks as they vie for leadership positions. Israel has come down harder on Palestinians in Gaza to make sure the withdrawal does not appear that the army is fleeing the area.
Early yesterday, army bulldozers demolished the home of Zainab’s family at the Askar refugee camp near the West Bank city of Nablus. The army said it also destroyed the home of the man suspected of dispatching the bomber. The Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades, a group tied to Fatah, claimed responsibility for the bombing.
In an interview with Israel Radio, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei said Al-Aqsa is a “part of Fatah,” and said it should be folded into the movement’s political wing. However, Qorei said it would be difficult to bring the armed group into the fold so long as Israel continues to hunt down and kill Al-Aqsa members.
In overnight violence, around 15 Palestinians were wounded in Khan Younis in a series of Israeli operations, including a helicopter strike. Palestinian sources also reported that around 10 houses had been demolished by the army in the same area.
In other events on the ground, around 30 Palestinians needed treatment when Israeli troops used rubber bullets to break up a demonstration against the controversial West Bank wall in the south of the territory.
— Additional input from agencies
