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American Morning

Conflict in the Middle East: Israel Continues Military Incursions Into Palestinian Territories

Aired October 24, 2001 - 09:48   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.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Ten Palestinians have been killed in stepped-up Israeli military action this morning on the West Bank. Israel says the operation is part of the search for the killers of an Israeli Cabinet minister.

We get the latest now from CNN's Jerusalem bureau chief, Mike Hanna.

Mike, what is the latest you can share this morning?

Good morning.

MIKE HANNA, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: Paula, this is the most extensive Israeli operation that has taken place since the peace process came into being, less than a decade ago. Throughout the past week, Israeli forces have taken up positions in a number of Palestinian-controlled towns and villages, the latest the village of Beit Rima, this just of the West Bank city of Ramallah.

The difficulty with establishing exactly what happened there is an intense blockade that has been set up around the village, Israeli forces not allowing anybody in or out of the area. This includes, according to Palestinian medical sources, medical teams, including ambulances.

The Israeli Defense Forces says that five Palestinians have been killed in operation in Beit Rima. All of these, says the Israeli Defense Forces, are known militants, members of Hamas or the PFLP -- that's the group that claimed responsibility for assassination of an Israeli government minister last week.

Palestinians say that it's not clear exactly how many people have been killed or how many have been injured. Some sources say as many as 10 Palestinians, and the number of injured is put at dozens.

This is an intensive operation taking place in several towns and villages and cities in the West Bank. There's been ongoing conflict as a result, in particular in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, where there's been virtually continual fire for the past week, exchanges of fire between Palestinian gunmen and the Israeli forces that have taken up position in the city.

The United States has called for Israel immediately to withdraw its forces, but to the contrary, Israel appears to be extending its incursions into Palestinian-controlled territory, the Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon saying that the forces will not withdraw, despite the U.S. plea, until, as he puts it, the mission is over -- Paula.

ZAHN: And Foreign Minister Shimon Peres told us the same thing here yesterday.

So in general, how is the Israeli public reacting to this? What do they think is going to happen?

HANNA: It's a very difficult situation. Some members of the Israeli public have been calling for hard-line action to be taken against the Palestinians, even more hard-line than had been taken in the past.

But there are other members of the Israeli public who are deeply concerned about this situation, who see the incursions and the ongoing occupation of autonomous Palestinian territory as an eerie reminder of what happened in Lebanon some two decades ago, something that Ariel Sharon presided over then as well. That was when he committed to move Israeli forces into position into positions within Lebanon for a particular period of time and to a certain position. The forces ended up in Beirut. Israeli forces ended in that war, for some two decades, losing hundreds of lives.

So the Israeli public is split on the issue at present. So too is the coalition government of Ariel Sharon. So the situation is not being received with overwhelming favor in the Israeli public; some are very strongly against it -- Paula.

ZAHN: Thanks for clarifying that for us this morning. Mike Hanna, appreciate it.

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