Israel launches strike on Gaza City

JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Israeli helicopters struck a suspected weapons factory in Gaza City Monday night following a weekend of terror attacks that killed 13 Israelis.

The Israel Defense Forces said its forces attacked a steel works used to manufacture weapons.

"The IDF will continue to attack and destroy the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza Strip and in every place where there is terrorist activity against Israeli citizens," the IDF said.

One explosion lit up the nighttime sky with a bright blue flash. Moments later electricity went out in parts of the city.

Three helicopters began their attacks shortly before 10 p.m. (3 p.m. ET) in the Zeitouni neighborhood, circling the city for more than half an hour. The attack lasted about 15 minutes.

CNN crews said at least three rockets were fired. They said ambulances were moving throughout the city and there were no signs of Israeli troops moving on the ground.

Palestinian sources said four people were lightly wounded.

The deadliest terror attack of the weekend came Sunday when nine people were killed and more than 50 wounded when a suicide attacker blew himself up on a bus near Safed in northern Israel.

Two other Israelis were killed later Sunday in a shootout with a Palestinian gunman in Jerusalem.

Early Monday morning, Palestinian gunmen ambushed a family of Jewish settlers in the West Bank, killing a man and his pregnant wife and wounding their two children, the IDF said.

The IDF identified the victims as Avi Volansky, 29, and his wife, Avital, 27. The attack took place near Eli, a settlement north of Ramallah, at 12:30 a.m. (5:30 p.m. Sunday ET).

The little-known Martyrs of the Palestinian Popular Army, a splinter group associated with Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the shooting. (More on the weekend violence)

In response to incidents, Israeli officials restricted the movement of Palestinians in the West Bank towns of Jenin, Nablus, Tulkarem, Qalqilya and Ramallah. Israel lifted some restrictions in Bethlehem and Hebron, saying the measures would be eased in areas that are quiet.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat said the restrictions would "only add to the complexity of the situation."

In another incident Monday, a suicide bomber who hitched a ride with an Israeli Arab security guard was killed and the guard seriously wounded when the bomber's explosive belt apparently went off prematurely at a junction near the Israeli Arab town of Um-el-Fahm in northern Israel.

Israeli police called the incident a "work accident," an Israeli euphemism for a terrorist bomb that goes off prematurely.

IDF catches Hamas commander
The IDF said Monday its troops had captured Hamas commander Mazan Kukha, whom authorities said they suspect of dispatching the suicide bomber responsible for Sunday's bus bombing.

Israel also blew up the houses of suicide bombers' families over the weekend in Nablus.

Hamas, a Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist group the U.S. State Department lists as a terrorist organization, claimed responsibility for Sunday's bombing but did not include the bomber's name.

Hamas previously has named bombers and often released videotapes showing them. The change in tactics is believed to be in response to Israel's decision to destroy the homes of the bombers' families.

Israeli officials said they believed the Safed bomber was from Jenin.

Hamas said the attack was part of a wave of operations intended to avenge the July 22 Israeli airstrike on Gaza that killed Salah Shehade, commander of Hamas' military wing. Fourteen other people, nine of them children, died in the attack.

Hamas said Sunday's bus attack also was intended to show its displeasure with a U.N. report on Israeli operations at the Jenin refugee camp in April.

At one point, Palestinian officials contended Israel had carried out a massacre at the camp, but the U.N. report said the evidence didn't substantiate those allegations. The report blamed both sides for their treatment of civilians.

Israeli Defense Minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer said Monday that Israel had intercepted and arrested 140 suicide bombers.

"It's enough to tell you that today we are getting close to 140 men and women suicide [bombers] in our hands alive," Ben-Eliezer said. "Imagine what would have happened if no one had stopped them."

U.N. chief says 'concrete steps' needed
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan called on world powers Monday to take concrete steps to convince the Palestinians and Israelis that their concerns are being addressed and there is hope for the future.

Annan asked the so-called "Madrid quartet" -- the United Nations, United States, European Union and Russia -- to re-energize efforts to bring peace to the region.

"I believe we should be seen as taking concrete steps to achieve the objective of two states living side by side in peace and security in three years' time," Annan said.

"I think we should be seen as taking steps that will lead to a Palestinian state, to convince the Palestinians that there is a prospect and hope on the horizon for them," he said.

On the other hand, Annan said, "we should also be seen as taking steps to end terrorism and assure security for Israel. We should move forward purposefully, deliberately, but both communities must be convinced that we are tackling their core issues."

Gee what a surpise,another terrorist group with ties to Arafat.If you hang out with criminals your probable a criminal,hang out with drug addicts your probable an addict,hang with terrorists your probable a terrorists.

That's why a lot of people don't trust Arab�s in the US, you can�t tell a good one from a bad one; actually I don�t think there is such a thing as a "good Arab". You watch, a few more terrorist attacks on US soil will send every Arab in the US packing to go back to their homeland or to a prison camp, like the ones we put the Japanese in WW2.

I doubt if there will ever internment camp's again.But they wll be looking over their shouders.

A big hooray for ignorance and bigotry everyone


HOORAY!

A little generalized, maybe, but bigotry is born out of ignorance, these feelings about which you are reading seems to be born out of experience. What do you expect them to do, give them a big ol' group hug, and tell them we love them no matter how many cafes they blow up?

The sad fact is the condemnation by Islamic leaders over the terror attacks is not forthcoming, and that silence is deafening.

I think a big group hug is what they all need. You know, just throw a Woodstock Revival right on the Gaza. Love for all.

No really, Palestine will keep attacking and Isreal will always retaliate. How can you stop the inevitable. It has always been this way and always will.

It would take something like one of actually laying down arms no matter what the other does to change the way. But that wont happen.

Yeah I get a little bitter 3000 Americans are killed for no reason.Then 5 more get it studying.I think America should shut our borders down till every thing has been resolved.If we keep letting them in there going to keep blowing up inocent people.

Midnight Mutilator - is a total tit

Thomas - There was plenty of condemnation about the terror attacks on the WTC. The Israel-Palestine conflict is an entirely seperate issue.

Krychek - I'm not sure it's quite as desperate as that. If Israel would just stop treating the Palestinian people like sh*t, then perhaps support for the terrorists would begin to subside.

And generally... it's simply unacceptable to use sweeping generalisations about "all arabs" or "all jews" or "all americans".

Dom - I do agree with you. The generalism is pretty pathetic, can't judge on the basis of the few otherwise I would be damned by Americans such as Anna Nicole, Mike Tyson, and the sort, more on the lighter side but you know what I mean.

As far as Isreal treating Palestine like they do. I quess I am blind to it as will my kids in their history books. The US supports Isreal and sides with them and all things equal the news will slander the Palestinian point of view. Sad to say they will always be the savages in our eyes. And sad to say I don't think US will open their eyes to the mal-treatment of the Palestinians by the Isreals because, heck money talks and Polititians listen. It is a screwed up situation in which I can only comment, but I also believe mankind can not exist without war and fighting, so heck, fight away.

I'm not sure about war and fighting being something that mankind can't live without. Certainly, the big wars of this century have done a lot to pull technology forwards, particularly the cold war, but I can't believe that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is doing any good at all. New inventions such as the semtex suicide belt are unlikely to have commercially viable civilian uses!

Personally I don't think the situation in the Middle East can be sorted without the US taking a less biased viewpoint. At the moment the billions of dollars of military aid to Israel (and tens of millions of civilian aid to Palestinians) makes it pretty clear which side of the fence the US is on. Regardless of the fact that practically every country in the world has stated that Israel's latest policies are unacceptable...

Hamas has publicly stated they do not want peace.So what is Isreal supposed to do.As much as Isreal needs to stop bombing cities to get 1 man, Palastine needs to get rid of Hamas.And the terrorist splinter groups.

TC, I'm talking more about everyone hoo-ah'ing about sending all the Arab-Americans to camps, all this 'no such thing as a good arab' #e.

I'm sure the majority of Arabs living in america are horrified by recent world events. I'm also sure that many of these citizens are worthy contributors to your society.

I'd also hazard a guess that there are probably many arab-americans who have contributed more to the society than all of you bigoted individuals yeehaw'ing it up on here.

Well I'm sorry but I am a little pissed that these murderers killed 3,000 of my people! They took our own planes and used them as flying bombs and killed defenseless people! Ok, so maybe I went a little overboard with my last comment, but I still think we should shut down the borders like Nyeff said, we can't trust these bastards. Also, I hate you stupid whining Anti-American's you people are always pissed when we fly our flag with pride and are happy when we screw up! You guys make me sick!

Well MM don't hide your feelings.

it's sad. the muder that justifies the murder that justifies the murder that justifies the murder that justifies the on and on...end the occupation.

MM, it wasn't palestinians that did the deed on 9-11. and of course they are mad at america, i mean, isreal is running around carring arms with those same big american flags on the side of them that you are wearing on your tee-shirt. i think we get emotional about 9-11 and we lash out at everyone we consider to be the "enemy", anyone with a brown face. in one of the rags i read they had pictures of young men-and at the top in bold it said pick the arab-they all looked arab, none of them were arabs but they all were american. if we step on one persons freedom because of 9-11 then we won't be america anymore, we'll be the very thing they tell us we are fighting against.

honestly i don't share your views or your blind pride in america. but i do love where i am and i do wanna protect the freedoms guaranteed to me by the contitution of the United States and that means protecting the freedoms of all citizens. you may as well rip up the constitution if you believe the things you posted here. you don't sound very patriotic to me, some of those folk that died were arab-american. because it was arabs that did the deed does that make their lives any less valuable?

and closing the borders is an impossiblity. we need to fix our government...and force them to make policy that doesn't kill our citizens.

Originally posted by Saphronia
.......

MM, it wasn't palestinians that did the deed on 9-11. and of course they are mad at america, i mean, isreal is running around carring arms with those same big american flags on the side of them that you are wearing on your tee-shirt. ......SNIP

I suppose what you are saying is that is that I would be justified, to kill innocent Russians, because the filthy arabs are shooting at Americans with AK_47's. Its your simplistic and blind atittude that is sickening. Why dont wake up and smell what your shoveling!

I don't think anyone has a problem with Palastinine(sp)people. The problem is with Hamas,they are murderers with no peace objective. They just get off on killing innocent people.These terrorist groups must be eleminated.These cowards do not deserve to live anywhere on earth.

Kano, I think M-M summed it up pretty well.

I understand what you are saying, and I don't think anyone is saying to line all the Muslims up and shoot them. The fact remains, however, that it isn't the Southern Baptists, or the Navajo Indians or the drinklen Irish decendants (I had to fit myself in there somewhere!) that are the ones attacking us. How many are good-hearted, law-abiding citizens? Who knows, you don't here from them. How many are seething cauldrons of hate for this country? The prison systems release them every day. The prison system is the recruiting stations for them. I had the opportunity (if you want to call it that) to interact with them for a year in a state pen for a year. Some were my neighbors for a couple years; hateful criminals. Are they the only ones that I've met? No. I met several Arabs while they were stationed at Ft. Rucker for flight school. A bunch of nuts, they were! Fun-loving clowns that were away from any of their Muslim clerics, with plenty of money and a good time to be had. I don't see any of them wanting to blow us up, but once again, it wasn't the girl scouts that attacked us. Not that I trust them, either. Every year they hawk cookies filled with sugar and saturated fat. They're trying to kill us with heart disease, I tell you!

just because it sickens you doesn't make it any less true. seems with all the PR money we've been spending in the middle east lately someone would have thought to get the flags removed from isreali weapons...at any rate, we are isreal's supplier, which is a bad thing understandably if you are a palestinian.

?, did you think it was wrong of South Africans and Mandella when they employed the same tactics that Hamas is using to gain freedom? (not suicide bombers but they blew up taverns and the like).