Israeli Tanks Kill 3 Muslims in Lebanon : Guerrillas Tell of Ambush; Army Threatens New Curfew, Beatings

Israeli tank fire killed three pro-Iranian Muslim guerrillas on a mission against Israeli troops in south Lebanon, a statement by the Islamic Resistance said today.

The umbrella group of Muslim radicals said, “One of (the) units, which was on its way to launch an attack against Israeli troops, was ambushed on Monday night near the village of Jarmaq.”

Jarmaq lies inside Israel’s self-declared security zone set up in 1985 to protect its northern borders from guerrilla attacks.

“Israeli tanks fired more than 30 shells on the stragglers, killing three of our Muslim heroes. But despite the heavy shelling, the rest of our unit were able to pull out the three corpses,” the statement said.

“Following the attack, Israeli forces lit up the sky with flare bombs and rushed reinforcements to the area.”

In the occupied West Bank today, Israeli border police shot and wounded a Palestinian demonstrator in the town of Jenin.

Shot in Leg

The Palestinian man was shot in the leg when dozens of protesters, their faces concealed with kaffiyeh headdresses, attacked their patrol in the Jenin refugee camp, the army command said.

A military spokesman said the patrol first used tear gas and rubber pellets and then opened fire with bullets when their lives were endangered.

Gen. Ehud Barak, deputy chief of staff, said the army will reimpose curfews and beat protesters if unrest persists, Israel radio reported.

Stores in Nablus, the largest town in the occupied West Bank, and Al-Ram, 10 miles north of Jerusalem, were closed today, the army command said.

In East Jerusalem, stores were closed for the 20th straight day.

In Jerusalem, left-wing lawmakers assailed Defense Minister Yitzhak Rabin today for his iron-fisted policy to crush Palestinian unrest in the occupied territories.

Rabin Defended

Right-wingers on the Knesset’s (Parliament’s) defense and foreign affairs committee defended Rabin against criticism from his own Labor Party colleagues and opposition leftists at a stormy closed-door session, participants said.