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American Morning

Israel Reoccupies Parts of the Gaza Strip

Aired April 17, 2001 - 11:10   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: And now to the Middle East where Israel has reoccupied parts of the Gaza Strip in raids by land, sea, and air, and it says it will stay until the Palestinian Authority moves to end the violence against Israeli.

Our Jerrold Bessel has been following the story for us from Jerusalem -- Jerrold, hello.

JERROLD KESSEL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.

An escalating situation. Israel has, indeed, taken -- retaken a very small part, it should be said, but certainly retaken a part of the Gaza district that was under the control of the Palestinian Authority of Yasser Arafat's Palestinian police, and both sides are seeing this not just as an escalation but more as an emerging patent of a different sense of this seven-month-old confrontation. It is now seen to be much more and more an out-and-out confrontation between the Israeli military and Yasser Arafat's Palestinian Authority forces.

Now the Palestinian leader arrived back in his West Bank headquarters in the town of Ramallah just a short while ago. He had been meeting with other Arab leaders in the region, and Mr. Arafat had some very harsh words to say when he spoke on his return. He said that "These raids by the Israelis are not just escalation. They are dirty. They are trying to make our people kneel. Everybody should understand that our people are steadfast and will not kneel before these gangs who are attacking our people, our villages, our refugee camps, our cities."

That the strong action of the -- strong reaction of the Palestinian leader. And, certainly, the Palestinians now taking stock of that fierce Israeli action in -- overnight by land, sea, and air. It was an assault into -- into different parts of Gaza. The Israeli raids coming from the sea, from the land, and from the air and attacking Palestinian positions, and the implication is that it's not just a confrontation directly between the two sides, but also that each side perceives the other side as engaging in unrestrained, almost unbridled actions.

That was what the Israelis saw in that Palestinian mortar bombardment of a town well inside Israel a couple of miles away from Gaza carried out yesterday afternoon. The Israelis say that raised the whole nature of this confrontation to a different dimension, attacking an Israeli city. The Palestinians see the nature of those attacks by Israel as a different dimension, a very fierce attack that was launched yesterday, and the -- both sides are seeing this more and more as a direct confrontation, and -- and also assessing just what is the meaning of this Israeli incursion and reestablishing themselves inside Gaza, inside those areas which have previously been held by the Palestinian police from where Israel says the mortars were fired.

An Israeli general -- although Israel has been saying it does not want to reoccupy parts of Gaza held by the Palestinian authority, a general a short while ago telling a journalist that the Israeli troops could be there for as much as months in order to prevent those mortars being fired.

So, while the argument now is renewed on whether Israel reoccupying parts of Palestinian-controlled territory or whether it's just there to -- for military exigencies to control the situation, that is a moot point. The Israeli troops are there. This confrontation is into a new dimension, not just an escalating dimension but one which could spread to -- regionwide. That is why there's so much concern, and that is why this confrontation is now at a very, very serious point -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Jerrold Kessel in Jerusalem. Thank you.

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