8A= THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
WEDNESDAY,APRIL10,2002
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WORLD NEWS
13 killed, nine wounded from Palestinian ambush
The Associated Press
JENIN, West Bank — Palestinians ambushed Israeli troops in the cramped quarters of a West Bank refugee camp yesterday, setting off a suicide bomb trap in a narrow alley and firing on soldiers in a courtyard, the military said. Thirteen Israelis were killed, the biggest blow to the army in its West Bank offensive.
The carefully planned double attack in the Jenin refugee camp also wounded nine Israeli soldiers. A military spokesman said a rapid series of blasts went off in the alley — one of them detonated by a suicide bomber — and collapsed part of a building on several soldiers.
"This is a battle for survival of the Jewish people, for survival of the state of Israel," Sharon said on Israel TV.
There were signs, however, that U.S. efforts were having an effect. Earlier yesterday, Israel pulled out of Tulkarem and Qalqiliya, two of six Palestinian towns it has occupied; troops remained in Nablus, Bethlehem, Jenin and Ramallah and several villages.
Defying U.S. demands that Israel's 12-day-old campaign wrap up without delay, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon vowed "Operation Defensive Shield" will go on until it fulfills its mission — "the destruction of the infrastructure of the terror groups."
The Jenin camp in the northern West Bank, home to more than 13,000 Palestinians, has been the site of the most intense fighting of the Israeli assault, with gunmen inside battling Israeli soldiers for the past week. All but three of Israel's casualties in the campaign have occurred in the camp.
Israel launched its offensive on March 29 to crush militias after a series of Palestinian suicide bombings. At least 124 Palestinians and 25 Israeli soldiers have been confirmed killed during the incursion, according to Palestinian medics and the Israeli army. The toll was expected to rise; there were reports that dead Palestinians had not been brought out of some areas, especially in the Jenin camp.
Aside from the deaths in Jenin camp, an Israeli soldier was killed yesterday in the city of Nablus, though the military said it may have been by errant Israeli fire.
Secretary of State Colin Powell, due to arrive in Israel late tomorrow, said he was optimistic his mission could bring a truce and lead to negotiations. Speaking in Cairo, Powell said he would meet Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as well as Sharon and said the U.S. was willing to deploy observers to monitor any cease-fire.
Israel had said it would keep Arafat isolated in the Ramallah offices where he has been confined by troops since the West Bank campaign began. But Israeli officials said yesterday they would not prevent Powell
from meeting the Palestinian leader.
Iraq alone in halting oil exports
The Associated Press
LONDON — Oil prices retreated yesterday as Iran and Libya held back from joining Iraq's suspension of crude shipments to countries allied with Israel.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Secretary-general Ali Rodriguez said the oil producers' group was opposed to an oil embargo, and some analysts expected Saudi Arabia and other moderate OPEC members to quietly boost their output to cover any serious shortfall in global supplies.
The incentive of higher oil prices might encourage non-OPEC producers such as Russia and Mexico to do the same, analysts said.
Signs of a partial Israeli withdrawal from Palestinian territories also helped to calm futures markets, a day after Iraq's cutoff triggered a 6 percent surge in prices. Markets seemed initially
The European Union's head office said it was convening a special meeting later this week to discuss rising oil prices. However, the European Commission played down fears of a looming world fuel emergency.
"We do not consider we are in a situation of crisis," EU Energy Commission spokesman Gilles Gantelet told reporters in Brussels, Belgium.
Prices for May contracts of Brent crude futures slipped by 92 cents a barrel to $26.10 in late trading in London. May contracts of light, sweet crude eased 71 cents lower to $25.83 a barrel in New York.
Israel withdrew yesterday, under heavy U.S. pressure, from two Palestinian towns, although its soldiers entered other areas of the West Bank. Secretary of State Colin Powell's planned visit to Israel late tomorrow
added to a perception that the United States was becoming more involved to try to secure a cease-fire in the Middle East, home to two-thirds of the world's proven oil reserves.
"That is the key theme of the next few days; what kind of news can we expect to see out of the West Bank," said Hans Redeker, head of global currency research for BNP Paribas.
Iraqi President Saddam Hussein announced Monday he was halting oil exports for 50 days or until Israel withdrew from the territories. A political dispute at Venezuela's state-run oil company exacerbated the turmoil.
Markets took comfort in the absence of any action or statement from Iran, the second-largest producer in OPEC, in support of Iraq's embargo. Iran, together with Libya, had earlier expressed sympathy for the idea of using oil as a weapon against Israel's allies, chiefly the United States.
U.S. hopes meeting can bring peace
The Associated Press
Powell said he was optimistic his intensive round of meetings could lead to negotiations to create a Palestinian state alongside Israel.
CAIRO, Egypt — Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday he would meet with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as well as Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon this week, and he offered U.S. observers to monitor a truce he hoped to broker.
"Time is of the essence" for ending Middle East violence, Powell said after meeting with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. He is seeking greater Arab participation in the peace process as well as an immediate end to Israel's military offensive.
It was the first time Powell had said expressly that he would meet Arafat during his trip to Israel, where he arrives tomorrow night and plans talks with both sides through the weekend.
The Palestinian leader has been isolated by Israeli forces in his headquarters in the West Bank city of Ramallah. Israel said it wouldn't stop the Powell-Arafat meeting.
Earlier, Powell had hedged, suggesting he would meet with Arafat only "if circumstances permit."
Powell said he had spoken to Sharon yesterday and the Israeli had reiterated "his commitment to bring this to an end as quick as he can." Powell praised Israel for beginning to withdraw troops from Palestinian areas but noted fighting persisted.
working to fill in the details of a U.S. vision for a permanent peace. Powell said political objectives must be pursued alongside talks to end the current violence. He told the Arabs they must acknowledge Israel's rights.
In another bid to enhance the U.S. role in the region, Powell said the Bush administration was prepared to help monitor ceasefire with American observers.
"That would help with the confidence building, the restoring of trust between the two sides, get us back to where we were a few years ago," Powell said.
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