6 Palestinians Killed in Clashes With Israeli Forces

Israeli forces arrested 10 Palestinians in a midnight raid on the village of Beit Rima, engaging in a gun battle that killed at least six Palestinians. Two of the men in custody are suspected in the October 17 killing of Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Zeevi, the Israeli military said.

The new fighting comes despite President Bush’s demand that Israel withdraw “as quickly as possible” from Palestinian areas it has seized since Zeevi’s slaying.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon deployed forces in and around Bethlehem, Beit Jala, Jenin, Ramallah, Qalqiliya, and Tul Karminto after the Palestinian Authority failed to hand over members of the Popular Liberation Front of Palestine. The PLFP claimed responsibility for the assassination of the far-right Zeevi last Wednesday, saying it was in retaliation for the murder of their leader, Abu Ali Mustafa, in August.

The incursions into Palestinian territory are the deepest since 1994.

In a speech to mark seven days since Zeevi was assassinated, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said he plans to pull out once Zeevi’s killers are arrested and the Palestinian Authority disarms militants and crushs rogue groups that have been attacking Israel.

The Palestinian Cabinet issued a statement charging Israel with carrying out an “ugly massacre” in Beit Rima, saying that nine Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded. The statement called on the world and U.S. to pressure Israel to “immediately put an end to this continuous aggression and offer protection for Palestinian civilians.”

In other towns held by Israeli forces, four Palestinians were killed Wednesday.

In Bethlehem, a 55-year-old Palestinian man was hit by a bullet, Palestinians said. The Israeli military has held portions of Bethlehem a few miles from the Church of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Jesus.

In an attempt to end the violence and restart the peace process, President Bush met with Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres at the White House on Tuesday.

During a joint press conference today with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw, Secretary of State Colin Powell added that “at this time it would be appropriate for the Israeli government to immediately withdraw from the Area A, the villages that they have occupied.”

U.S. officials are increasingly worried that the intensification of Mideast violence could undermine efforts to bring moderate Arab states into a coalition to fight international terrorism.

The U.S. first requested a withdrawal on Monday. U.S. State Department spokesman Phil Reeker read a strongly worded statement saying, in part, “Israel Defense Forces should be withdrawn immediately from all Palestinian controlled areas and no further such incursions should be made.”

Israeli Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer brushed aside the demand.

“The things that came out of there [the United States], with all due respect, are not valid,” he said.

Israeli newspapers described the exchange as a sign of a growing rift in relations with the United States, which provides Israel with $3 billion in annual aid.

Monday’s State Department statement also called on the Palestinian Authority “to do all in its power to halt violence and terror,” adding that failure to do so “is absolutely unacceptable.”

The Palestinian leader says he is doing everything he can to stop the violence, but that Israeli actions have fueled anger beyond his control.

The PLO’s Supreme Security Council has outlawed the military wing of the PFLP and Palestinian security officials said they had arrested more than 30 militants since Wednesday.

However Arafat’s ability to crack down on radical groups was weakened after the militant Islamic group Hamas vowed to avenge Monday’s killing of one of its top bombmakers, Ayman Halaweh. Israeli officials had no comment on the car explosion that killed Halaweh, but Sharon’s office said in a statement Halaweh was involved in eight suicide bombings in which 48 people were killed — including one at a Tel Aviv disco in June in which 21 people were killed.

Pressure is also mounting on Sharon. Members of Peres’ center-left Labor Party, a key coalition partner, threatened Monday to consider pulling out of his government if the offensive against the Palestinian Authority continues.

So far, at least 32 Palestinians and one Israeli have died in the clashes.

At least 656 Palestinians and 177 Israelis have been killed since the revolt began in September 2000 after peace talks stalled.