---------- From: "Stasi" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subject: [Peoples War] Palestine: Hamas Militant Killed In West Bank - BBC Sunday, 14 October, 2001, 13:32 GMT 14:32 UK RealPlayer Video: http://news.bbc.co.uk/olmedia/1595000/video/_1598833_mideast14_plett_vi.ram Hamas militant killed in West Bank ======================== http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/middle_east/newsid_1598000/1598391.st m Despite the ceasefire, tensions run high A prominent member of the militant Islamic group Hamas, Abdul Rahman Hamad, has been shot dead by a sniper at his home in Qalqilya in the West Bank. The governor of Qalqilya, Mustafa Malki, said Mr Hamad had been killed by two bullets to the chest as he stood on the flat roof of his house. "This is a crime and means the Israeli promises for calm are mere lies and we cannot trust them" Yasser Abed Rabbo Palestinian Information Minister Israel did not officially admit to carrying out the killing, but Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's office issued a statement, saying Hamad had been responsible for directing the suicide attack at a Tel Aviv disco in June, which killed 22 people. The Israeli cabinet, meanwhile, has said it would ease the military blockade of Palestinian areas because of a decrease in violence. Promises and lies Palestinian information minister Yasser Abed Rabbo told Voice of Palestine radio: "This is a crime and means the Israeli promises for calm are mere lies and we cannot trust them." "Our people must make sure that they are at maximum alert. They must not pay attention to the promises of the Israeli Government, but rather see its actions on the ground," he said. A BBC correspondent in Jerusalem says this attack looks like a revival of Israel's policy of targeting suspected militants it says are involved in attacks on Israelis. It is the first targeted killing carried out by Israel in about six weeks. Hamas has not acknowledged the ceasefire, and has carried out several attacks in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip in recent weeks. It has vowed to retaliate for Hamad's death. Cabinet meeting Our correspondent says the measures announced by the Israeli cabinet following their Sunday meeting are part of a ceasefire agreement that was signed last month. They include easing severe travel restrictions in the West Bank and Gaza, and letting some Palestinian workers back into Israel. The Israeli authorities had delayed these steps, accusing the Palestinians of violating the truce. Now they say the violence is beginning to decrease. The government has also decided to withdraw from Palestinian areas in the West Bank town of Hebron, reoccupied after Palestinians there shot at Jewish settlers. Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat is due to leave the Middle East on Sunday to visit London for talks on the regional peace process with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair on Monday. Mr Blair has stressed the importance of progress being achieved towards a political settlement.
