night as children were getting ready for bed, the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem (ICEJ) news service reported Friday June 21. Police officials were quoted as saying that the infiltrators didn’t intend to take hostages but "to kill as many Israelis as possible."
They started with the Shabo home, where they reportedly opened fire on the family, killing the mother, Rachel, and three of her eight children and wounding two more children. A security officer was also killed.
The attack at the Itamar settlement brought the week’s death toll to 31 Israeli civilians in three days, and over 100 injured, according to official figures. Two soldiers have also died, the ICEJ said. The latest bloodshed came as Israeli troops continued to attack targets in Palestinian area’s in response to two suicide bombings in Jerusalem.
GRANDDAUGHTER KILLED
At least 26 people were killed in those attacks, including students and a woman and her five-year-old granddaughter. Although Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat condemned the bombings, his aids also warned that Israel’s latest incursion in Palestinian towns and village would only lead to a new cycle of violence.
There were also growing tensions among Israeli and Palestinian civilians Friday, June 21, with Palestinian children trading their Pokemon cards for necklaces with pictures of "martyrs" of the Palestinian uprising against Israeli occupation, the ICEJ news service said.
"I used to have plenty of Pokémons – my school bag was half full of them," 14 year-old Saleh Attiti was quoted as saying. "I threw them all away. They’re not important now. The pictures of martyrs are important. They’re our idols," he added.
US PEACE PLAN STALLED
With the violence continuing, United States President George W. Bush did not appear any closer Friday, June 21, to present his peace plan.
President Bush "knows what he wants to say," but "I think in the immediate aftermath of these attacks, it’s obvious that the immediate aftermath is not the right time," said White House spokesman Ari Fleischer.
