Israelis, Palestinians clash in Hebron
Palestine, Local, 7/7/1997

Palestinian youths and Israeli soldiers exchanged stones and rubber bullets in clashes in Hebron on July 5 as Israel and the Palestinian Authority traded accusations over the West Bank unrest.

One Palestinian was wounded after soldiers fired rubber bullets and tear gas at youths who pelted them with stones and bottles on the confrontation line between Israeli- and PLO-ruled parts of the city.

Hebron has been ravaged by daily clashes since a Jewish woman ignited Arab anger last week by pasting anti-Muslim placards.

"We are Muslim youths and we are defending our homeland for our holy Koran and religion," said Nidal Mohammed Badawi Azhur, an 18 year old lying in a Hebron hospital with a rubber-coated metal bullet in his chest. "I am proud to be wounded," he said.

The violence has overshadowed Israeli-PLO peace moves which ground to a halt in March when Israeli prime minister Netanyahu enraged Arabs by breaking ground on a new settlement in Arab East Jerusalem.

Jewish settlers gathered behind the soldiers, shouting anti-Muslim slogans, the witnesses said.

They also tossed eggs, stones and rubbish at Arab protesters. Outrage over the anti-Muslim posters spread to Arab towns in Israel. In Nazareth, thousands of Arab Israelis waving green banners inscribed with the Muslim profession of faith, "There is no god but Allah and Mohammed his prophet," marched in protest against the offending posters.

Several homemade petrol bombs were thrown at Israeli forces in Hebron's Casbah, Israel military sources said.

"We call on the people in Palestine to chase out the herds of settlers and make their life unbearable hell," the militant Islamic group Hamas said in a leaflet. Scores of Palestinians have been wounded in the clashes. Israeli cabinet secretary Danny Naveh accused Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat of "systematically violating" a January peace deal under which Israel handed over 80 percent of Hebron to the PLO and demanded Arafat put an end to the unrest.

"Arafat is playing a double game. On the one hand he instructs his men to sit with Israeli representatives and on the other he allows his security forces to allow this violence and rioting to fester," Naveh told Israeli television.

"Violence and the peace process cannot go together. We passed very severe messages to the authority on this matter"

The Palestinian Authority cabinet in statement released on July 5 after a late-night meeting called for international intervention to salvage crumbling peace moves.

Israeli leaders have condemned the anti-Muslim hate poster and police have charged a 26 year old woman with illegally posting the signs and with endangering life by stoning an Arab car. The offenses that carry a maximum 24 year sentence.

Three weeks of clashes in the divided town over the settlement in the peace process has left more than 220 Palestinians wounded.

Please add a link on your webiste pointing to ArabicNews.com and bookmark ArabicNews.com & subscribe to our daily email news bulletin.

Search