A mortar attack from across the Jordan River, aimed at Kfar Ruppin in the Beisan Valley early this morning, and a two-hour exchange of fire later in the morning between Jordanians and Israeli forces on the West Bank, about 10 miles north of Damiyah Bridge, ended a New Year weekend in which terrorist activities were otherwise centered on the Gaza Strip and the town of Gaza. According to a military spokesman, there were no casualties on the Israeli side of the latest incidents. The mortar attack occurred at 3 a.m. The exchange of fire began at 8 a.m. and lasted until 10.
In the Gaza Strip, the military governor imposed a curfew Saturday — lifted this morning — after two persons were injured by hand grenades thrown Friday night near a movie and a coffee house in the town of Gaza. One person was fatally injured Saturday morning when police were forced to fire into a mob that was beginning to riot outside the labor exchange at Raffash, in the southern Gaza Strip. Earlier, an Israeli half-track was damaged when it struck a mine near Kahn Yunis, an important road junction just outside the Gaza Strip. Another mine was found nearby and dismantled. Curfews imposed on Kahn Yunis and on the village of Beth Hanoun were still in effect this morning, as a search for the terrorists continued.
The driver of a private car in the Golan Heights was wounded by a sniper Friday, but managed to drive to a military post where he received treatment.
In another type of terrorist activity, a bazooka shell was fired Thursday night into the home in Ramallah of Dr. Hamdi El Farouki, a local Arab leader. Damage was slight and there were no casualties. Israeli authorities said the shell was a warning to Dr. El Farouki, who is regarded as a “moderate” by Arab terrorist gangs.
A military spokesman said that a search is still going on for terrorists who planted a mine which killed one Israeli soldier and injured three others near the Gaza Strip. last Thursday. Meanwhile, two terrorists were captured in northern Israel on Friday, believed, according to a military spokesman, to be the ones responsible for blowing up a pylon which caused a black-out of electric power in the Beisan Valley a week ago. They may also be part of a gang which sabotaged a field shack on the slopes of Mt. Tabor in central Galilee last week. Tracks of other suspects were found leading to the Jordan River.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
