Leaders of Izz a-Din al-Kassam, the military wing of the Islamic fundamentalist group Hamas, have rejected the Palestinian Authority demand to disarm.
The demand was made during talks this week between the two groups. The talks in Gaza were aimed at easing tensions in that area, but Hamas leaders reiterated that their group would not stop attacks against Israelis.
The meeting came in the wake of last week’s terror attacks in Gaza. One of the suicide-bomber attacks, in which an explosive laden van rammed into a bus, left seven Israelis and one American dead.
At the same time, Palestinian police released some 25 fundamentalist activists who were arrested in the roundup that followed the Gaza suicide bombings.
Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Force has lifted the day curfew on Hebron, which went into effect after an undercover border police unit killed three wanted Hamas terrorists on Sunday.
However, a night curfew on Hebron remained in effect.
Hebron Mayor Mustafa Natshe said he would petition Israel’s High Court of Justice against the ongoing curfew, saying it is disrupting the lives of Hebron’s 120,000 Arab residents.
Natshe also appealed to Palestine Liberation Organization leader Yasser Arafat to call on the United Nations Security Council to address the issue.
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