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Two Palestinians Wounded, Israel Leaves Qalqilya
GAZA CITY, Nov 5 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Two Palestinians were wounded early Monday when Israeli forces penetrated the Palestinian-ruled area of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, Palestinian sources said, news agencies reported.
An Israeli tank and two bulldozers advanced into the area and destroyed two Palestinian houses - amid gunfire which wounded two Palestinians - the sources said, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
The raid occurred as Israeli tanks and troops were completing a withdrawal from the Palestinian-ruled town of Qalqilya in the northern West Bank, which they occupied more than two weeks ago.
Palestinian security officials said the withdrawal from Qalqilya - one of six Palestinian-ruled towns invaded by Israel - begun with six Israeli tanks pulling out of the northern and southern entrances of the town.
The Israeli army said its forces had pulled back a few hundred meters to the edge of the Palestinian-controlled territory and into Israel.
Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said Sunday the planned army withdrawal would continue following an attack on Israelis in Jerusalem, which came subsequent to Sunday's heavy Israeli bombardment of several buildings in the Gaza Strip.
The Palestinian Authority condemned the bus shooting incident, but rejected Israeli accusations that it was responsible for the violence.
Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer was quoted by Israeli army radio as telling a weekly cabinet meeting that he was also in favor of withdrawing from the four other Palestinian towns - Nablus, Ramallah, Tulkarem and Jenin - still surrounded or partly-occupied, but did not give a fixed date, AFP reported.
Last week, Israeli forces pulled out of Bethlehem and nearby Beit Jala, two other towns they occupied after the assassination of hard-line tourism minister Rehavam Ze'evi. The armed wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) claimed responsibility for the killing, saying it was in retaliation for Israel's murder of their leader, Abu Ali Mostafa, in August.
Israeli forces still occupy four towns in the face of wide criticism by the international community. The United States has been pushing Israel to resume talks with the Palestinians and pull out of the towns it has occupied in the West Bank.
Israel's hard-line Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said his forces will only withdraw when the Palestinian Authority has outlawed resistance groups and handed over those responsible for Ze'evi's murder.
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, meanwhile, left Monday for a meeting of European and Mediterranean countries in Brussels - also being attended by Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, Palestinian sources said, AFP reported.
It will be the second time in a week that the two will sit at the same conference table - but as in Majorca last Friday and Saturday, they are not expected to engage in any negotiations.
Arafat is set to make a speech and have talks with Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, whose country currently holds the presidency of the European Union (EU). The Palestinian leader will also meet with EU foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, and Middle East envoy, Miguel Angel Moratinos.
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