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Israeli Missiles Destroy Arafat's Residence in Fresh Attacks on Gaza
GAZA CITY, Dec 3 (News Agencies) - Israeli helicopters destroyed Yasser Arafat's presidential residence and offices in a missile strike in Gaza City on Monday, while the Palestinian leader was out of Gaza, a news agency correspondent on the scene said.
Israeli Apache helicopters raided Palestinian targets in the north of Gaza City on Monday, just hours after Prime Minister Ariel Sharon returned early from Washington due to a wave of attacks on Israel this weekend, Agence France-Presse (AFP) correspondent said.
The U.S.-built Apache attack helicopters fired missiles at a Palestinian security office close to Arafat offices, AFP reported earlier, before destroying his residence. His heliport and two helicopters were also destroyed.
The BBC reported that Arafat was said to be in Ramallah, in the West Bank, at the time of the attacks.
CNN reported that at least nine missiles - BBC said 10 - were fired near Arafat's office, saying that there were no reports so far of any deaths or injuries.
Palestinian security officials fired back at the Israeli aircraft with heavy machine-guns.
Sharon held a meeting earlier this morning with his security cabinet, and is to address the country in a nationally televised address later today.
The BBC said that during his meeting with Sharon on Sunday, U.S. President George W. Bush said Arafat "must do everything in his power to find those who murdered innocent Israelis and bring them to justice."
In response to the attacks, the Palestinian Authority has cracked down on hardline resistance movements since yesterday, arresting about a hundred activists after condemning the deadly attacks.
But Israel has dismissed the arrests as a "sham". One senior Israeli army officer, who declined to be named, said the arrests were "just a piece of well-staged theatre meant to show that the Palestinians are doing something."
Although the U.S. usually advises Israel to restrain its responses after Palestinian attacks, Washington offered no such appeal this weekend.
Washington also did not mention bringing to justice those responsible for murdering innocent Palestinians during the Intifada, or uprising.
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