Children Join Series of Clashes in Hebron

Sporadic clashes on the dusty streets here between Israeli soldiers, Jewish settlers and Palestinians went on for several hours Sunday even as an Israeli army curfew kept most residents indoors.

Meanwhile, in the Gaza Strip, Palestinians burned American and Israeli flags to protest U.S. strikes against alleged terrorist targets in Sudan and Afghanistan.

In Hebron, Israeli soldiers scuffled with Jewish settlers and fired rubber bullets toward Palestinian children.

Angered over the recent killing of a local rabbi, a group of settlers, including children, scuffled with Israeli soldiers and pelted Palestinian journalists with eggs, potatoes and apples near one of six compounds Jewish residents occupy in Hebron.

The children then headed toward the Palestinian-run vegetable market, closed since a curfew began Thursday. Israeli television footage showed a handful of children wearing traditional knitted skullcaps overturning market stalls and dumping produce on the ground.

Soldiers pushed back about 25 settlers as they attempted to cross into the Palestinian-controlled area of the city. At the checkpoint, a group of 30 Palestinian children, some as young as 5 years old, threw stones toward the Israeli troops, who responded by firing rubber bullets and a stun grenade.

Palestinian police eventually dispersed the stone-throwers, pushing them out of range of the Israelis. No injuries were reported.

Also, the parents of a 3-month-old baby, Qusai Sultan, claimed their infant died Saturday night at an Israeli military checkpoint after soldiers refused to let the Palestinian family seek treatment at a nearby hospital.

The Israeli army said it investigated the charge and staunchly denied such an incident took place.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu urged Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat to denounce Thursday’s fatal stabbing of Rabbi Shlomo Raanan, 63.

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Raanan was the third Jewish settler killed by suspected Palestinian attackers in the West Bank in August. Two Jews were shot dead earlier this month outside Yitzhar settlement near the Palestinian-ruled town of Nablus.

A Cabinet statement also said the government would strengthen the Jewish area in Hebron. It said permits would be issued for permanent housing to replace mobile homes at the site of the Thursday night killing.

Arafat’s aide said the decision would only hurt the peace process.

“We think that this decision may increase the tension in the Hebron area. The Israeli government should begin the political separation of Israel from the West Bank as a step forward to rescue the peace process,” Nabil Abourdeneh told Associated Press.

Most of Hebron’s residents live in the zone that Israel turned over to Palestinian control last year. The other 20%, where 500 Jewish settlers live among 30,000 Palestinians, is controlled by Israel. The city is often a flash point for violence between Israelis and Palestinians.

After the killing of Raanan, Israeli troops placed a curfew on Palestinian residents, preventing them from leaving their homes or opening up market stalls, turning the usually bustling center into a virtual ghost town.