As Israeli and Palestinian negotiators continued their talks for implementing an Israeli redeployment in Hebron, Jewish settlers warned of an eruption of violence following the planned Israeli troop pullback.
The warnings were prompted by an Israel Radio interview Wednesday with a man identified as a Palestinian from the Hebron area who said that Palestinians were stockpiling arms, including automatic weapons.
Should clashes break out with Jewish settlers, he said, “they will be in for a surprise.”
The interview prompted a flurry of reaction from Jewish settlers in Kiryat Arba, the Jewish settlement adjacent to Hebron, who informed their local council head they would return fire if fired upon.
“We view this as a very grave matter,” Kiryat Arba council head Zvi Katzover told Israel Radio. “Dozens of people called my office, telling me they would not be sitting ducks.”
Representatives of the Jewish settlement in Hebron said the radio interview with the Palestinian only confirmed what they had been saying all the time – – that an Israeli redeployment would result in bloodshed.
Palestinian officials denied the claims made by the Palestinian interviewee.
Sufian Abu Zaide, the head of the Israel desk in the Palestinian Authority, suggested that the radio reporter had been duped by a Palestinian opposition member, or someone posing as a Palestinian, who hoped to heat up the atmosphere at a crucial point in the negotiations.
Meanwhile, Palestinian trucks were barred Wednesday from entering Israel via the Erez crossing, after Israeli intelligence warned of possible terror attacks.
The Karni crossing continued to operate, though Israeli security forces were carrying out thorough checks of Palestinian vehicles.
Yigal Pressler, the prime minister’s adviser on terrorism, warned that terrorist groups might try to carry out attacks over the weekend, when the Islamic Jihad marks the anniversary of the killing of its leader, Dr. Fathi Shakaki, in Malta last year.
Islamic Jihad officials hold Israel responsible for the slaying and have vowed revenge. Israel declined to comment on whether it was behind the shooting.
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