Israeli air force jets bombed and strafed Palestinian terrorist bases for the second time in 48 hours Tuesday morning, in what was described as the heaviest air raid over southern Lebanon in nine years.
Reports from the scene said at least seven people were killed and 46 wounded by rocket and machine-gun fire from the attacking aircraft.
According to eyewitness reports, 12 jets took part in the two-hour raid, attacking in two waves. It was said to be the most intensive air attack since 1982, when Israel invaded Lebanon.
The Palestine Liberation Organization and other terror groups reportedly ordered their forces on maximum alert.
An intelligence officer for Al Fatah, the main wing of the PLO, warned that Israel was preparing for a major assault on Lebanon. But there were no signs in Israel of any such preparations.
Reports from Tyre identified the air raid targets as bases and headquarters of at least four organizations, located near Majdelyoun and Safiyeh villages, three miles east of Sidon, and elsewhere in southern Lebanon.
A major installation of Nayef Hawatmeh’s Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine was destroyed by a direct air-to-ground missile hit.
One report described it as a depot housing armored combat vehicles, artillery and ammunition.
Headquarters of the Abu Nidal group in the village of Salhiyeh were damaged, as were Fatah headquarters near Ibera village and a Sunni Moslem militia base near Sidon.
The Israeli-backed South Lebanon Army was reported to have shelled the target areas during the air raid.
Reports from Lebanon said the casualties included several children from a school near one of the targets.
Israeli sources claimed terrorists deliberately sited their installations near schools and hospitals to lessen the risk of attack and to use civilian casualties for propaganda purposes.
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