Arafat calls for truce; campaign for supporting the Geneva peace initiative; Two Palestinians killed
Palestine-Israel, Politics, 11/17/2003

Two Palestinians were killed by the Israeli forces during an incursion in Rafah city to the south of Gaza yesterday at dawn, while one eight-year old Palestinian was wounded in his stomach.

The occupation forces invaded the area and destroyed one house for the Palestinian citizen Bassam Abu Libda who is accused of smuggling weapons to Gaza where clashes erupted between Palestinian resistance and the occupation forces in which two Apache copters took part and bombarded the said house and as a result one Palestinian was killed.

The owner of the house Abu Libda together with two of his aides were able to flee but were chased by the Israeli forces and detained one of his aides after he was slightly wounded, according to a statement by the occupation forces.

Meantime, four Israeli soldiers were wounded when an explosive went off in an Israeli armored vehicle on the border strip in Rafah to the south of Gaza yesterday at dawn. Saraya al-Quds, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad movement, claimed in a statement responsibility for the attack which said to have targeted an Israeli tank.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian President Yasser Arafat called on all Palestinian groups to meet with the PLO executive committee in order to study the possibility of finalizing a truce with Israel.

In conclusion of his meeting of a delegation representing Christian men of religion, Arafat announced that the director of the Egyptian intelligence will arrive today, Monday, in Ramullah in the framework of discussing means to end the prevailing situation and to protect what he called the "peace of the brave."

Earlier, the founder of the Islamic resistance movement, Hamas, Sheikh Ahmad Yassin announced the readiness of the movement to join a dialogue with the Palestinian government concerning a truce.

In the political field, Palestinian and Israeli groups which had finalized what is called the Geneva Initiative which seeks to reach an understanding between the two Palestinians and Israelis on the ground of a two state solution, started a campaign to for citizens' support.

The Palestinian side which is led by member of the PLO executive committee launched its campaign by circulating appendixes for the agreement in collaboration with al-Quds newspaper, while the Israeli side which is led by former minister Yusi Belin started its campaign by circulating the agreement on the Israelis from a position near the residence of the Israeli prime minister in West Jerusalem and via email.

The initiative also got an implicit support from the Palestinian President, while it was deplored by the Israeli prime minister, considering that "Israel has to work strongly in order to prevent adopting it." The plan will be signed on December 1st in Geneva in the presence of the two sides and the Swiss foreign minister.

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