Some 30 wounded, four arrested; in Bethlehem, troops wound terror suspect.
By YAAKOV KATZIDF Ramallah 298.88(photo credit: Al Jazeera)
Six Palestinians were killed and close to 30 wounded on Thursday during fierce clashes between IDF troops and Palestinian gunmen in the West Bank city of Ramallah. One IDF soldier was lightly wounded by shrapnel during the clashes. Troops from an elite unit swept into the city in the early afternoon in pursuit of a Palestinian wanted for involvement in terror activity against Israel.
Backed by armored vehicles and D-9 bulldozers, as well as soldiers from the Duchifat Battalion, the troops surrounded the home of the suspect, identified by Palestinians as a member of the Aksa Martyrs Brigades, who succeeded in fleeing the scene and evading capture. The troops apprehended four other Palestinians inside the home.
Six Palestinians were killed and nearly 30 were wounded, including the photographer for a local news agency, security officials said.
Bursts of gunfire, loud booms and the wail of sirens could be heard across the city for more than two hours as the fighting sent residents and shoppers scrambling for cover. During the operation, more than a dozen jeeps drove through streets as an army bulldozer pushed aside vehicles and vegetable stands. Al Jazeera carried the entire operation live on its network.
Another elite IDF unit operated in Bethlehem, shooting a terror suspect whom they had come to arrest. He was evacuated to an Israeli hospital in Jerusalem for treatment.
Earlier, troops shot a Palestinian near who was approaching the security fence in the northern Gaza Strip.
Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas harshly condemned Israel's deadly raid into Ramallah, saying it "proved that the Israeli calls for peace and security are fake."
In a written statement on Thursday, Abbas appealed to the international community to rein in Israel. "The continued aggression will only lead to the destruction of all efforts aimed at realizing peace," Abbas said.
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