Israeli Jets Blast PLO Faction Near Syria Border, Kill 10 Guerrillas

Israeli jet fighters attacked bases of a PLO faction opposed to Yasser Arafat in eastern Lebanon on Monday, killing 10 guerrillas and 10 residents in the deepest thrust into Syrian-held territory this year, authorities said.

The fourth Israeli air raid on Lebanon this year coincided with the eighth day of Beirut sectarian violence sparked by opposition to Syrian military intervention. At least eight more people were killed in the fighting Monday.

Police said Israeli planes fired rockets into two bases of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command near the village of Bar Elias, six miles west of the Syrian border. The command is based in Damascus.

Witnesses said Palestinian and Syrian anti-aircraft batteries opened fire on the raiding planes but missed.

At least 20 people, including the 10 guerrillas, were killed and 20 others were wounded in three bombing runs carried out by six Israeli warplanes, police said. A small house near the bases was destroyed by rockets and all of its 10 Lebanese inhabitants were killed, they said.

Also among the dead was a member of the PFLP-GC’s Central Committee, a spokesman for the group said. He refused to identify the official.