Posted on 05/04/2004 11:00:55 AM PDT by yonif
A nine-year-old Palestinian boy was killed and two other children were wounded in the West Bank on Tuesday when they accidentally detonated a pipe bomb apparently prepared by militants, witnesses said.
The boys found the crude device hidden in the crevice of a stone wall close to a main road near the city of Tul Karm, and it exploded while they were playing with it, the witnesses said.
Other Palestinian sources said, however, that the explosion had been caused by a flare left by IDF troops after training in the area overnight. The IDF said it had no information on the blast.
In the early hours of Tuesday, an Israel Air Force attack helicopter fired a missile early Tuesday at a group of armed Palestinians in the Khan Yunis refugee camp, killing two and wounding at least 20, residents and doctors said.
The Israel Defense Forces said the raid was to stop the firing of missiles at settlements in the Gush Katif bloc.
Witnesses said the gunmen targeted by the helicopter fired two missiles at IDF tanks before the helicopter struck. Residents said one of the dead Palestinians was a 15-year-old bystander, while the other was a 25-year-old gunman.
The attack came during an IDF operation in two parts of the camp. Tanks and bulldozers leveled land and tore down buildings across from a Jewish settlement.
The IDF operation came two days after Palestinian gunmen opened fire on an Israeli vehicle on a nearby road, killing a pregnant settler and her four young daughters.
Doctors at Khan Yunis hospital said some of the wounded lost limbs. Some civilians were among the wounded, they said.
Also early Tuesday, IDF troops took up positions around Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat's office building in the West Bank city of Ramallah, witnesses said.
They said IDF vehicles surrounded the complex and soldiers took over buildings across from the compound. IDF officials said soldiers were arresting suspects, but the operation was not linked to Arafat's office. The army ended its operation around 7.30 A.M. local time.
Arafat has been confined to the Ramallah building for more than two years. Israel has said he is free to leave but might not be allowed to return.
Recently Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said he considered himself freed of a commitment he made to U.S. President George Bush not to harm Arafat. The U.S. administration replied that Sharon was still bound by his pledge.
Both countries charge that Arafat is tainted with terrorism. Last September, the cabinet declared that Arafat should be "removed," although did not specify the manner of, or timing for, such a move.
Moral of the story....don't stand anywhere near a guy lobbing missles at a jewish settlement. If your not old enough to figure this out your parents should keep you from standing anywhere near him.
Or perhaps they guy should take the initiative and tell children to stand back. But you can't beat the guarantee of news a few human shields (sacrifices) will conjure up. Especially if they're children.
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