EU envoy Miguel Moratinos: critical of Israeli crackdown

Frantic Efforts to Revive Middle East Peace Talks

The Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, is going to Jordan for talks with King Hussein. The Israeli Foreign Minister, David Levy, sees President Mubarak of Egypt on Tuesday. President Mubarak met Mr Arafat two days ago. The American mediator, Dennis Ross, is expected to arrive in the region later in the week.

It is still unclear which group carried out the Jerusalem bombing but Israel has continued to round up suspected Palestinian militants. They have arrested 29 people in the West Bank.

Palestinians are being stopped from entering Israeli-controlled areas and security forces are threatening to shut down Palestinian radio stations.

The BBC's Brian Hanrahan reports on the effects of Israeli security measures on those living in the West Bank town of Ramallah Dur: 2"54'

The European Union's Middle East envoy, Miguel Angel Moratinos, has criticised some Israeli measures, saying they will only create greater insecurity.

Israel's Prime Minister is under fire from the opposition, too. The Labour Party leader, Ehud Barak, urged Benjamin Netanyahu to stop blaming Yasser Arafat for last week's bombs when it was still not known who was behind them.

Five Killed in Clashes in Southern Lebanon

And in what the the Israeli army described as a routine operation, not a commando raid, five Hizbollah fighters were killed overnight in southern Lebanon.

According to an army spokeswoman, Israeli troops were on patrol when they were ambushed by Hizbollah fighters outside the town of Nabatiyeh. Nabatiyeh is outside the border zone, which is 14 kilometres wide. She confirmed that at least five Hizbollah fighters were killed in the clashes between Israeli soldiers and Hizbollah reinforcements.

Clashes between Israeli troops and Hizbollah are a regular occurrence. Hizbollah, which is backed by Iran, now under the leadership of a relatively moderate president, is fighting to oust Israel and its local militia allies from the border zone. Israel says it patrols the zone in order to protect its northern border from attack.

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Israeli Foreign Ministry homepage
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