Ha'aretz:Palestinians attempt to slaughter Israelis after the Israelis begin to hand over their weapons

By Amos Harel Ha'aretz Military Correspondent Ha'aretz 22 October 2000

Five IDF soldiers and an Israeli civilian were lightly injured in an exchange of fire with Palestinian security forces on Friday, after the van they were traveling in mistakenly entered a Palestinian village and was trapped by an armed crowd. The incident has fueled concerns that recurrent navigational errors by soldiers may cause heavy losses in the future, and has spurred proposals to solve the problem.

The van, which was carrying 15 trainees from the Golani brigade and an Israeli citizen, entered the village of Anabta, located in Area A (full Palestinian control), while on its way toward Israeli territory from the area of Nablus. After it entered the village the van was pursued by a Palestinian Police jeep which blocked its way out. The van was then immediately surrounded by a crowd of approximately 100 Palestinians, many of them armed, including members of the Palestinian police, the Tanzim, and other security forces.

According to the IDF version of the incident, the Israeli platoon commander left the van alone and approached the Palestinian police in an attempt to solve the incident without violence. But after leaving the van he was forced to the ground by the Palestinian police, who pointed their rifles at his head. At the same time a number of the Palestinian police attempted to board the van, demanding that the soldiers hand over their weapons.

The platoon sergeant, who had remained on board, decided to pass two weapons to the Palestinian police, and told his men to open fire if the commander was not released. After the guns were passed over some of the Palestinians began to fire at the van. The platoon commander took advantage of the commotion to escape and boarded the van, ordering the driver to reverse out of the village. Shots were fired at the van as it reversed, lightly injuring the platoon commander and the sergeant, who returned fire. Three other soldiers and a civilian received cuts from shrapnel.

According to the Palestinian version of events, personnel from Jibril Rajoub's security apparatus covered the Israeli soldiers and prevented the crowd from hurting them. They also returned the weapons that were taken from the soldiers to the IDF's security liaison office, against the wishes of the Tanzim, who demanded that the weapons remain in their hands. IDF sources confirm that the weapons were returned.

The incident has underscored concerns in the IDF about the recurrence of navigational errors that lead soldiers and civilians into Area A. In many cases the Palestinian security forces have prevented those entering Area A by mistake from returning to territory controlled by Israel. The main cause of the problem is that the points of entry to Area A are poorly signed, or not signed at all. The IDF is currently considering several proposals to solve the problem, including additional concrete barriers and roughened asphalt to warn drivers that they are about to enter the area.