5 Palestinians, 1 Israeli Killed in Territories
In the bloodiest day since Israel and the PLO signed their peace accord four months ago, five Palestinians and an Israeli were killed Friday in clashes in Israel’s occupied territories.
A nine-hour gun battle with soldiers in Hebron ended in the deaths of three prison escapees and a fourth man. One soldier was wounded.
In the Gaza Strip, an Islamic militant stabbed an Israeli to death and seriously wounded another before being shot and killed.
The Islamic Resistance Movement, or Hamas, claimed responsibility for the Gaza attack in announcements made over mosque loudspeakers in Gaza City.
The army issued a statement saying the four men killed in Hebron also belonged to Hamas, which opposes the accord between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization.
It was the highest single-day death toll in the occupied territories since a peace accord was signed Sept. 13.
Fifty-six Palestinians and 2 Israelis have been killed since then.
Talks between Israel an the PLO on implementing the accord have bogged down over disputes. As attention focuses on a scheduled Sunday summit meeting between President Clinton and Syrian President Hafez Assad in Geneva, the latest bloodshed was likely to deepen disenchantment on all sides.
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