Palestinians "smuggling" in weapons

The Israeli army says the Palestinian Authority has been amassing weapons -- including anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles -- often smuggled in by sea.

The Israeli army chief of staff, Shaul Mofaz, told a meeting of Jewish activists from abroad, that the missiles were also being transferred by tunnel from Egypt.

He said that the recent escalation in attacks against Israeli targets had been partly due to a greater involvement by officials of the Palestinian Authority, including policemen and security agency personnel.

A spokesman for the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat described the accusations as baseless and said they were being used to conceal Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service