Israeli on high alert after botched Jerusalem blast

JERUSALEM – Israeli security forces remained on a heightened state of alert and sealed off the northern West Bank town of Jenin yesterday after a botched Palestinian bombing at a checkpoint close to Jerusalem.

“We are maintaining the state of alert because of the risk of an attack and as we continue our search to track down all the terrorists,” Jerusalem police chief Ilan Franco told reporters. Police had reinforced roadblocks around the city and were preventing all Palestinians from travelling beyond the Ar Ram checkpoint at the northern entrance to east Jerusalem.Two Palestinian civilians were killed and 18 people were wounded in Wednesday’s attack at a temporary roadblock near the Qalandiya Palestinian refugee camp.The roadblock had been erected following intelligence that militants were planning an attack in the heart of Jerusalem.The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed offshoot of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the attack, which was criticised yesterday by Palestinian premier Ahmed Qorei.”This kind of operation runs counter to the interests of the Palestinian people,” Qorei told reporters at his West Bank offices after a meeting with a five US congressmen.But Qorei also said that Israel must take a share of responsibility for the attack for its continued “incursions and assassinations” which prompted militants to take their revenge.It is thought that the blast was triggered by remote control when the bomber, noticing the increased police presence, left it on the side of the road and tried to flee.One suspect from the northern West Bank has been arrested.Military radio reported that the army had surrounded the northern West Bank town of Jenin, the stronghold of the Al-Aqsa Brigades.Six of the injured were border policemen, three of whom were said to be still in a critical condition in hospital.The blast went off in an area where Israel’s West Bank barrier is due to be built, but construction has been temporarily after a court order.Israel’s deputy Defence Minister Zeev Boim said Thursday that “Israel’s ability to prevent attacks will be limited” if the court continues to delay construction work.”Dozens of petitions have been submitted about the location of the fence,” Boim added.”In my opinion the court does not have the staff to deal with this flood of petitions quickly.That is the main issue.”Meanwhile, Palestinian security sources said that Israeli army bulldozers had demolished 15 houses in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah.An Israeli spokesman confirmed the destruction of “several empty houses which had been used as cover for attacks” against troops deployed along the border between Gaza and neighbouring Egypt.A group of around 15 locals who have lost their homes in the Rafah destruction in recent days staged a protest inside the local governor’s office Thursday demanding that more efforts are made to rehouse them.- Nampa-AFPPolice had reinforced roadblocks around the city and were preventing all Palestinians from travelling beyond the Ar Ram checkpoint at the northern entrance to east Jerusalem.Two Palestinian civilians were killed and 18 people were wounded in Wednesday’s attack at a temporary roadblock near the Qalandiya Palestinian refugee camp.The roadblock had been erected following intelligence that militants were planning an attack in the heart of Jerusalem.The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed offshoot of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the attack, which was criticised yesterday by Palestinian premier Ahmed Qorei.”This kind of operation runs counter to the interests of the Palestinian people,” Qorei told reporters at his West Bank offices after a meeting with a five US congressmen.But Qorei also said that Israel must take a share of responsibility for the attack for its continued “incursions and assassinations” which prompted militants to take their revenge.It is thought that the blast was triggered by remote control when the bomber, noticing the increased police presence, left it on the side of the road and tried to flee.One suspect from the northern West Bank has been arrested.Military radio reported that the army had surrounded the northern West Bank town of Jenin, the stronghold of the Al-Aqsa Brigades.Six of the injured were border policemen, three of whom were said to be still in a critical condition in hospital.The blast went off in an area where Israel’s West Bank barrier is due to be built, but construction has been temporarily after a court order.Israel’s deputy Defence Minister Zeev Boim said Thursday that “Israel’s ability to prevent attacks will be limited” if the court continues to delay construction work.”Dozens of petitions have been submitted about the location of the fence,” Boim added.”In my opinion the court does not have the staff to deal with this flood of petitions quickly.That is the main issue.”Meanwhile, Palestinian security sources said that Israeli army bulldozers had demolished 15 houses in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah.An Israeli spokesman confirmed the destruction of “several empty houses which had been used as cover for attacks” against troops deployed along the border between Gaza and neighbouring Egypt.A group of around 15 locals who have lost their homes in the Rafah destruction in recent days staged a protest inside the local governor’s office Thursday demanding that more efforts are made to rehouse them.- Nampa-AFP