Three Palestinians killed, Israel opens fire on diplomats in Khan Younis
Palestine-Israel, Politics, 12/22/2000

Three Palestinians were killed and several others wounded on Thursday as every day in various parts of the West bank and Gaza strip at a time when the Israeli attacks expanded to include a foreign and diplomatic delegation which was inspecting the consequences of the bombardment at Khan Younis Camp when the Israeli opened fire on them.

Meantime, and amid the Israeli escalation of attacks against the Palestinians, an Israeli officer at the military intelligence said that special units of the snipers in the Israeli army is chasing the Palestinians and liquidating them within the Palestinian areas and cities by various means.

For its part, the Israeli ministry of settlements announced a bid to build hundreds of settlement units in the west bank and Gaza.

Meanwhile, news reports from Washington said that the Palestinian and Israeli sides in the negotiations on Thursday admitted that there are numerous impediments despite the small progress attained towards having sovereignty over the city of Jerusalem.

The US President has proposed a suggestion that includes the headline for a possible agreement between them before he will quit the White House on January 20.

However, Palestinian officials stressed that the negotiations will face difficulties and deep differences as the question of Palestine, the return of the Palestinian refugees, the borders and the israeli colonies, are among the main issues that are still suspended and still under debate.

Sources from both sides reported that President Bill Clinton indicated that that January 10th, 2001 is the last day for the two sides to reach an agreement.

The Palestinians say that these talks are futile and therefor they continue their massive uprising until they can expel the Israeli occupation and attaining independence, stressing determination to commit to the option of resistance despite the negotiations taking place in Washington.

One of the officials at the Fatah movement Marwan al-Barghouti said that seven years of what is known of peace ( since the Oslo agreement) brought no peace to the Palestinians. He added that the Israelis want to impose their own conception of peace and therefore the Intifada came as a reaction embodying the rejection of the Palestinians for any thing less than meeting their rights.

On the other hand, a palestinian medical source said that one Palestinian was killed on Thursday by the Israeli bullets near Toulkarem to the north of the West bank.

Also another palestinian youth was killed by the Israeli army near al-Mintar crossing between Gaza and Israel.

One Palestinian youth was also died of previous wounds he had on Wednesday when the Israeli forces opened fire on him near the crossing of the Israeli settlement of Natsareim in Gaza.

Meantime, a spokesman for the Israeli army said that four israeli soldiers were wounded on Thursday when a car driven by a Palestinian crashed them at a barrier at one of entrances of occupied Jerusalem.

The spokesman explained that two of the four soldiers were seriously wounded and the identity of the palestinian was not known.

On Thursday, the Israeli forces opened their gun-machine fires against an Arab and foreign diplomatic delegation accompanying the Palestinian official in charge of planning and international cooperation at the Palestinian government Nabil Shaath in an inspection visit of the consequences of the israeli aggression of Khan Younis Camp, to the south of Gaza sector near Ghoushe Kteive settlement.

Shaath added that the israeli army forces opened their fire intensively against a delegation representing diplomats and others accredited at the Palestinian government and several foreign consuls who was accompanying them in an inspection visit to the destroyed areas by the Israeli attacks against the self0 rule authority territories and against the Palestinians houses, noting that no body was damaged.

Shaath explained that the israeli soldiers who were existed at al-Tuffah barrier, ten minutes after the arrival of the delegation at the camp, opened fire intensively despite the fact that the palestinian Authority had notified the Israelis beforehand about this visit through the Palestinian- Israeli military liaison and co-ordination committee.

Previous Stories:
  Settlement could be reached before Clinton's departure from White House   (12/21/2000)
  Three Palestinians killed and tens wounded in clashes with Israeli forces   (12/21/2000)
  Al-Aqsa Sheikh for continued Intifada   (12/21/2000)

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