MIDDLE EAST: Seven ultra-Orthodox Jews were injured, two of them seriously, when a Palestinian gunman opened fire as they left a holy site on the outskirts of Nablus before dawn yesterday, writes David Horovitz in Jerusalem
Known as Joseph's Tomb and believed by some Jews to be the burial place of the biblical Joseph, the site lies inside territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority, having been abandoned by the Israeli army early in the second intifada (uprising) three years ago, burned by Palestinian rioters and then rebuilt.
The Israeli army prevents Israelis from visiting it. Most Palestinians believe to be the tomb of a sheikh.
Sixteen members of the Hasidic "Satmar" religious sect ignored the ban and drove to the tomb for pre-morning prayer and study. As they left, a gunman opened fire on them from close range, injuring seven. As of last night, some of the group were still in hospital, others were in police custody for having broken the law in visiting the tomb, while the group's organiser, Rabbi Asher Weissfisch, was declaring that Satmar groups would continue to sneak into Nablus.
Two Palestinian groups - Islamic Jihad and the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades of Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction of the PLO - claimed responsibility for the shooting, which came as all Palestinian groups marked the 10th anniversary of the eruption of the first intifada. Efforts by the PA's Prime Minister Ahmed Korei to broker an intifada ceasefire collapsed earlier this week, and Hamas spokesman at a demonstration in Gaza yesterday vowed to continue suicide bombings inside Israel.
In interviews with the Hebrew media, Mr Korei urged Israel's Prime Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon, to join him at the peace table and forge a permanent accord, saying there was "no more time" for delay or for interim agreements. He also said that if Israel rerouted its security barrier along the pre-1967 Israel-West Bank border, rather than cutting into West Bank territory, he would have no objection to it. Indeed, the PA, he said, would help finance its construction.
Meanwhile, there was more of the gangland violence that saw three Israeli passers-by killed by a bomb intended for an alleged underworld chief in Tel Aviv on Thursday. Rafi Levy, an alleged gang boss, was found shot dead near Lod on Thursday; a body washed up on Jaffa beach was also linked to gang warfare; and Alon Levy, suspected of a grenade attack last month, was in critical condition after a gunman pumped 10 bullets into him.
Mohammad El-Baradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, yesterday urged Israel to give up its nuclear capability. In an interview he said nations of the region should agree on eradicating nuclear weapons. Otherwise, "there will be continued incentive for the region's countries to develop weapons of mass destruction to match the Israeli arsenal".