IDF soldier killed in Nablus

While all eyes were drawn to the fighting in the north and to the Qassam rockets in the south, the fighting in the West Bank continued early Monday, claiming a heavy price as an IDF soldier was killed after an explosive device exploded in Nablus. The soldier was identified as First Sergeant Osher Damari of Netanya. 

Commander of the Judea and Samaria Division said following the incident: "There are many attempts by terror organizations in the West Bank to open another front, also in order to release the pressure from the south and north of the country."

A soldier was killed and three other troops were injured in the explosion, three of the wounded sustaining moderate to serious wounds and the rest sustaining light wounds. 

The wounded received initial medical treatment at the field and were taken to hospitals in the center of Israel. One of the injured is the son of Central Command Chief Yair Naveh. 

Immediatley after the explosion, dozens of residents gathered around the soldier's body and burst into shouts of happiness in front of the Arab media's television cameras.

After the incident, a senior member of the Brigades told Ynet that his people hold part of the killed soldier's body, but another activist made it clear that there was no plan to negotiate on the body parts, which were later transferred to the Palestinian Authority and then to IDF representatives. 

Palestinians hold military shoe (Photo: AP)

The deterioration of events was described to Ynet by Brigadier General Yair Golan, Commander of the Judea and Samaria Division: "Troops from the Haruv 93rd Brigade operated in Nablus' casbah, where there were alerts of intentions to carry out terror attacks within Israel."

"As part of the operation, arrests were carried out in the casbah, an area which is very difficult to operate in. When the force intended to leave, an explosives device was thrown, and fire was opened, killing a soldier who absorbed most of the blast. Six other soldiers were injured," he said.

Division commander: Luck not always in our favor

Brigadier General Golan emphasized that the fact that the force did not see the Palestinian who threw the explosive was not a failure: "There was no mess up here, this is a very crowded area which allows endless places to hide. We are operating there and most of the time it passes off without unusual incidents, but luck is not always in our favor. The mistake was that the Palestinians took parts of the body, but there will be no negotiations and we will bring the soldier to burial."

In total 12 suspects were arrested in IDF operations across the West Bank on Sunday night. Brigadier General Golan addressed IDF operations in the area, which has been going on at the same time as the fighting in the north and the south: "There is a very specific alert in our hands on an intention to launch a terrorist attack from Nablus, and some of those arrested overnight were linked to that. We also have information on movements in Jenin, Tulkarem, and Bethlehem to carry out terror attacks."

"According to intelligence in our hands, there are many attempts by terror organizations in the West Bank to open up an additional front, in order to decrease pressure in the south of the country and in the north," he said.

The commander added that "many things happen in Samaria which are not heard about, and that's a good thing. I can't promise that this will go on, but our activities day and night are very intensive. They are as determined as ever to carry out attack within Israel. Just two weeks ago we thwarted an attack when we caught members of an Islamic Jihad cell in the Ariel area."

• Western Galilee and Haifa residents woke up to the sounds of a siren Monday morning. Katyusha rockets landed in a number of communities. Four people were lightly injured east of Akko when a house suffered a direct hit.
  

• The Air Force and IDF gunners continued to massively shell Lebanon, for the first time using the "Destroyer" – a multi-barreled rocket launchers – against Katyusha launching sites.
  

• A diplomatic initiative is being formed in a bid to halt the fire: British Prime Minister Tony Blair and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called to deploy an international force on the northern border. On Sunday, leaders of the eight industrialized states condemned Hizbullah and its supporters.
  

• At least 22 Qassam rockets were fired at Sderot, Kibbutz Nahal Oz and the Ashkelon area Sunday evening and Monday morning. Two residents were lightly hurt by shrapnel and the electricity supply was cut off.