Israel Rejects U.S. Criticism of Anti-Terror Steps

Israeli Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin on Tuesday brushed off American criticism of his government’s revived anti-terrorism measures and pledged to use “whatever means are effective” to ensure security in Israel and the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip.

Rabin’s comments during a tour of the West Bank came as security officials invoked the new policy to place four Palestinian students under administrative detention. A spokeswoman for the military government also confirmed that Israel plans to deport nine other Palestinians shortly.

In response to a recent increase in attacks on Jewish civilians, the Israeli Cabinet on Sunday resolved to revive both detention without trial and expulsion of Arabs accused of terrorism. Three Jews were murdered, apparently by Arabs, in two incidents late last month.

Once Widely Used

Both sanctions were widely used in the first years after Israel took control of the occupied territories in the 1967 Six-Day War, but until a few days ago, neither had been used since 1981.

The U.S. State Department released a statement Monday saying it considers such punishments counterproductive. “We regret the Cabinet’s decision and hope that these measures will not be implemented,” the statement read.

Asked about the American criticism during a stop in Nablus on Tuesday, Rabin commented, “With all respect for the opinion of the United States, we are going to take whatever measures we feel are fit and effective to cope with terror.”

Referring to the public clamor here for tougher action in the face of the recent attacks, the defense minister added, “In our current situation, we have no choice but to take the steps we have.”

Site of Murder

Rabin visited the site in Nablus where an Israeli civilian was murdered on July 30. The city is the largest on the West Bank, with an Arab population of about 80,000.

The army said Tuesday that four Palestinian students from An Najah University in Nablus have been placed under administrative detention. They can be held for as long as six months without a trial and without formal charges being filed against them.

The four, whose ages range from 22 to 30, are leaders of different student political groups that identify with various branches of the Palestine Liberation Organization, according to security sources. The army charged that the groups are fronts for terrorist organizations and said those detained had engaged in “inciting activities” among the students.

On Friday, military authorities ordered An Najah closed for two months after what they charged was use of the campus for “meetings and incitement by terrorist organizations.” The army said it found “inflammatory material which encouraged terrorist actions against Israel” during a search of the university a week ago.

School Denies Charges

University officials denied the charges of incitement and said the student organizations had been active in preparation for elections to the student council, which were originally scheduled for last Monday.

One other Palestinian Arab was put under administrative detention late last week.

The nine Palestinians who are slated for deportation were among 1,150 Arab prisoners freed in late May in exchange for three Israeli soldiers who had been captured in Lebanon.

About 600 of the freed Arabs were allowed to stay in Israel or the occupied territories, including 31 who were not immediately able to prove their claims to residence.

Under an agreement with the International Red Cross, Israel said it would permit the 31 to stay temporarily while they attempted to establish their right to residence. The Red Cross has been unable to find another country ready to accept the men.

A spokeswoman for the occupation authorities said Tuesday that while 22 of the claims are still under review, nine others have been rejected and those individuals are to be deported within days.

Court Demands Proof

However, the Israeli Supreme Court on Tuesday issued an order demanding that the defense minister and the military governor of the town of Tulkarm show cause within 45 days why one of the nine--Abdel-Majid Ghadad--is to be expelled. Ghadad, who claims Tulkarm as his residence, had served 17 years of a 30-year sentence for anti-state activity when he was released in the May prisoner exchange.

In a separate development, the Justice Ministry announced that a team appointed more than a year ago to investigate the beating deaths, while in custody, of two Arabs who took part in a bus hijacking has submitted its findings to the attorney general.

A spokesman for the ministry had no comment on an Israel radio report that the team, headed by State’s Attorney Yona Blatman, found insufficient evidence to charge the head of Israel’s paratroop corps, Brig. Gen. Yitzhak Mordechai, with the deaths. Mordechai is the highest-ranking officer implicated in the incident.

According to the radio’s military reporter, the investigating team found that Mordechai’s actions were intended to protect human life and occurred at a time when it was still unclear whether the bus hijackers had left a live bomb on the vehicle.

Charges might still be brought against Mordechai and several other members of the Israeli security services for using “inappropriate force” against the prisoners, Israel radio said.

Civilian Bus Seized

The incident in question occurred in April, 1984, after four Palestinian Arabs seized a civilian bus south of Tel Aviv and threatened to blow it up if 25 Palestinian prisoners were not freed.

Israeli troops stormed the bus after an all-night siege. One Israeli hostage and two of the hijackers were killed during the action. The army originally reported that all four hijackers were slain in the clash. However, after press photographs emerged showing two of the Arabs being led away by Israeli captors, then-Defense Minister Moshe Arens ordered an investigation.

A few weeks later, the Defense Ministry acknowledged that two of the hijackers wre captured alive and died in Israeli hands of skull fractures caused by blows with blunt instruments. After that admission, the attorney general named the Blatman team to investigate the killings.