In the center of Ramallah, less than a mile from Arafat's compound, Israeli troops waged a firefight Saturday morning with Palestinian gunmen holed up in an office building. The Israelis fired rockets into the building, shattering windows, igniting a fire and sending large plumes of smoke into the sky. Israeli troops using loudspeakers then called on Palestinian militants inside to surrender. Eventually, a group of 15 came out into the street with their hands up and had their hands tied by the Israelis. Several were allowed to go back inside to bring out those wounded and suffering from smoke inhalation. The injured were placed in an armored Israeli medical vehicle and taken away for treatment.
And none of them blew up? Surprising.
Sakher Habash, a senior figure in Arafat's Fatah movement, was arrested in Ramallah, according to the Palestinian news agency Wafa. Palestinian sources said he detained elsewhere in the city, not at the site of the shootout.
Hope he's not the only one they're rounding up. There should be lots of them. Don't forget Sheikh Yassin, the head of Hamas. |