Welcome, Guest Personalize News Home Page - Sign In Middle East - AP Huge Car Bomb Detonated in Israel Thu Sep 5, 6:48 AM ET By MARK LAVIE, Associated Press Writer JERUSALEM (AP) - Police on Thursday detonated a 1,300-pound car bomb, one of the largest ever discovered, and Israel's foreign minister said Israel averted a catastrophe that could have changed the face of the Middle East. Israel is bracing for a possible new wave of attacks by Palestinian militants during the Jewish New Year holiday, which begins at sundown Friday. Israeli-Palestinian fighting erupted during the holiday two years ago. In the Gaza Strip ( news - web sites), a Palestinian gunman fired at an army patrol Thursday, wounding two Israeli soldiers before being shot dead by troops. The Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, a militia linked to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat ( news - web sites)'s Fatah ( news - web sites) movement, claimed responsibility for the shooting. In the West Bank, tanks raided the Balata refugee camp and troops arrested two members of the Islamic militant group Hamas on suspicion they were planning to carry out a suicide bombing, the military said. In a Tel Aviv court, meanwhile, Palestinian official Marwan Barghouti went on trial on charges he orchestrated terror attacks that killed scores of Israelis in the past two years. Barghouti told the three-judge panel that he does not recognize the court's right to try him. "The one who should be sitting here (as a defendant) is the government of Israel," Barghouti said in fluent Hebrew. He has denied the accusation, saying he is a political leader, and has said he hopes to turn the trial into a showcase for what he said were the crimes of Israeli occupation. Relatives of terror victims and Barghouti's three children were in the packed courtroom. In the hallway outside, there were scuffles and shouting matches between Jewish and Arab spectators. Near the northern Israeli town of Hadera, police stopped two suspicious cars early Thursday and discovered that one, a pickup truck, was rigged with 1,300 pounds of explosives, as well as two barrels with fuel and metal fragments. A cell phone, which was to have set off the charge, was attached. Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres said the discovery of the bomb was a "miracle" [Thank You, Lord!!]and police officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they had averted a so-called "mega attack". Had the bomb gone off, Peres said, "it would have cost such loss of life that it would have changed almost the entire political situation in one moment." The incident began when volunteers serving with the police spotted two vehicles speeding down a winding dirt road leading from the West Bank into Israel. The volunteers gave chase and the drivers abandoned the cars and got away on foot. The bomb squad detonated the charge, destroying the car. The second vehicle apparently was to have served as a getaway car. Police using tracker dogs and helicopters were searching for the drivers. Israel has traditionally tightened security during Jewish holidays. The deadliest Palestinian attack in two years came on the eve of the Passover holiday in March, when a suicide bomber killed 29 guests in a hotel banquet hall. However, there as been a monthlong lull in suicide attacks, and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ( news - web sites) said in a series of holiday interviews that for the first time since September 2000, he sees hope for a peace agreement with the Palestinians. Sharon has ruled out talks with Arafat, charging he has encouraged militants to attack Israel. However, Sharon said he could talk to "Palestinians who have reached the conclusion that by terrorism nothing can be achieved." He said discreet contacts with Palestinians are continuing, but would not say with whom. "Now for the first time I see a possibility of opening the road to a political settlement," he told Israel TV's Channel Two. He did not say what kind of settlement he envisioned. Sharon and Peres expressed reservations about a European peace proposal that envisions Palestinian statehood by 2005. Sharon believes the timetable of the plan, presented by visiting Danish Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller, is "not realistic," an Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Thursday. Arafat said he accepted the plan in principle, but would study it further. Moeller said the European Union ( news - web sites)'s concept is to combine all the plans now on the table and present a unified program to the "quartet" dealing with the Mideast: the United States, Russia, the European Union and United Nations ( news - web sites). Denmark holds the rotating presidency of the European Union. In the past, Sharon has said he would consider creation of a Palestinian state at the end of a long process. First there would be a years-long interim stage under which the Palestinians would maintain control of the territory they now hold under interim peace accords — about 40 percent of the West Bank and two-thirds of Gaza. If the interim period passed without incident, Sharon has said he would suggest negotiations on key issues like the future of Jerusalem, Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza, Palestinian refugees and borders. Palestinians reject the concept of another interim accord. They want a state in all of the West Bank and Gaza, with the Arab section of Jerusalem as its capital. < Previous Story Email Story Print Story Next Story > Message Boards: Post/Read Msgs (599725 msg Sep 5, 5:29 AM ET) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- More World - Middle East Stories --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ADVERTISEMENT Services • Daily Emails • Free News Alerts --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 2002 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Copyright © 2002 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. Questions or Comments Privacy Policy -Terms of Service