Pullout on hold, Gaza flares up

Just a week after Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon made what seemed like a landmark declaration of intent to pull Jewish settlers out of Gaza, Israeli tanks staged a raid in Gaza City Wednesday.

The toll of 14 Palestinians killed, 12 in Gaza City and two in the southern Rafah Refugee Camp during two army incursions was the highest in months. But the scenes of urban warfare were similar to those in a raid just two weeks ago, also in Gaza City, in which nine Palestinians were killed.

Masked men clutching guns they used against Israeli tanks, ambulances screeching, and wounded civilians wincing Wednesday all added to the sense that turmoil rather than momentum towards peace is following Mr. Sharon's surprising statement, which has since been watered down by officials including the defense minister, Shaul Mofaz.

The officials said last week that Israel would not withdraw from three settlements in northern Gaza and would keep a security zone along the border with Egypt. Ha'aretz quoted Mofaz as saying that the army might not pull out of the Katif settlement bloc, currently home to many of Gaza's more than 7,500 settlers, instead holding onto it as a "bargaining chip" for future negotiations.

Israeli government spokesman Avi Pazner said the recent army actions are part of an ongoing campaign against terrorism. "We are on a search mission for terrorists. We are trying to destroy terrorist infrastructure." And Col. Yoel Struk, in charge of northern Gaza, said "The timing of the operation stems from operational considerations only."

Army officials explaining their advance into Gaza said that recently there had been a surge of violent activity from the Shajaiyeh neighborhood, including the planting of bombs. Colonel Struk was quoted by Israel's Ynet news service as saying that all of the Palestinians hit by Israeli gunfire were "armed" but the Shifa Hospital's wards in Gaza included civilians, some of them children.

Earlier Israeli statements about a possible withdrawal of settlers in Gaza seemed to do little to cool tempers here. "We don't believe in any Israeli statements," said a black-masked, Kalashnikov-clutching fighter, near the exchanges of fire on the Shajaiyeh neighborhood's Baghdad Street. "We don't care if they talk about withdrawal or not. Every day the army takes another action. And we will keep fighting. The children here are ready to carry weapons."

He vowed there would be a response about the fatalities. "The blood of our martyrs is not shed for nothing. We will not forget their blood." Medics quoted by Reuters said that at least six of those killed in Gaza City were gunmen and one was a policeman.

Hundreds crowded outside Shifa Hospital waiting for word of the dozens of wounded as a loudspeaker blared the al Baraka verse of the Koran. It speaks of fighting in defense of the truth and tells the story of David and Goliath.

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