The body of one of the Palestinians slumps over in the driver’s seat

By Samer Khuwayera, IOL Correspondent

NABLUS, April 25 (IslamOnline.net) – Israeli special forces disguised as Palestinians assassinated four Palestinian resistance activists Saturday night, April 24, in two separate incidents in the West Bank city of Jenin.

The undercover troops rained three activists of Fatah’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades from a civilian car with Palestinian plate and then sped off covered by Israeli occupation troops, witnesses told IslamOnline.net.

The three fighters were identified as Kamal Abdullah Tawas, a 29-yearl-old local leader of the brigades, Mohammad Mahdi Azoza, 17 and Sayeed Hardan, 18.

Several passers-by were badly injured in the attack, including al-Jazeera correspondent and Reuters cameraman Ali Samoudi and another correspondent to Palestinian al-Quds newspaper.

Israeli troops later shot dead Hosni Daraghema, a 22-year-old activist of the Islamic Jihad’ al-Quds Brigades, and seriously injured his brother Iyad in Mothalas al-Shohada area near the West Bank city.

Witnesses told IOL that Iyad was rushed to nearby Martyr Soliman Hospital and underwent a surgery to remove a bullet from his neck.

An Israeli occupation source said that the soldiers were trying to arrest two “wanted” Palestinian activists, who tried to flee, forcing the soldiers to shoot at them.

“Our forces are now checking to see if their bodies are booby-trapped,” the source said.

Earlier, Israeli soldiers rolled into the area aboard some 15 jeeps and armored vehicles.

The deaths brought to at least 3,942 the number of people killed since the outbreak of the Palestinian Intifada in September 2000, including at least 2,973 Palestinians and 899 Israelis.

Schoolboys Injured

In other incidents, three Palestinian schoolboys were wounded by Israeli fire during clashes with troops in the town of Yabad, west of Jenin, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.

Also Saturday, al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades said its fighters had killed a Palestinian who was suspected of “collaborating” with Israel.

The group said in a statement that the man was shot near his home in the West Bank.

Palestinians have warned that moles for the Israeli occupation troops are a cancer eating away at the Palestinian body.

The stark warning followed a series of Israeli assassinations of leading Palestinian resistance figures, the latest of whom Hamas spiritual leader Sheikh Ahmad Yassin and the group’s leader in Gaza Abdelaziz Rantissi, who was killed Saturday, April 17, in a missile strike.