Israel bombards Palestinian towns

Israeli helicopters attack Palestinian targets

Israel has bombarded Palestinian targets in Gaza and the West Bank town of Ramallah in retaliation for a series of Palestinian suicide bomb attacks.

Two Palestinians were killed in Ramallah, one a member of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's elite presidential bodyguard, known as Force 17, the other a woman civilian, hospital doctors said.

About 60 other Palestinians were injured.

Rockets like this showered Ramallah and Gaza

Israel claimed self-defence, but the Palestinians condemned the bombardment as unjustified aggression.

Hundreds of Palestinians took to the streets of Ramallah chanting abuse against Israel and Mr Sharon.

A BBC correspondent in Jerusalem, Jeremy Cooke, said this is a serious escalation in the conflict that threatens to get out of control.

After the attacks US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said:

"We recognise Israel's need to provide for its security. At the same time, we do not believe there is a military solution to this conflict."

Strategic targets

The Palestinian Authority evacuated its main headquarters in Ramallah after receiving a warning.

The Israeli army announced that the attack was over about an hour after it began.

It listed an arsenal, training camp and various installations used by Mr Arafat's presidential guard in Gaza among its targets.

Other more personal targets were also hit, such as the spot where Mr Arafat's helicopter usually lands.

Retaliation

It is time that Yasser Arafat stopped subjecting the Palestinians to this kind of punishment

Raanan Gissin, Israeli spokesman

These are the first major air raids against Palestinian targets since October, when Israel retaliated for the lynching of two Israeli soldiers in Ramallah.

They come in response to a wave of violence.

Three Israelis have been killed and more than 30 injured in three separate bomb attacks over the past two days.

Raanan Gissin, a spokesman for the Israeli prime minister suggested that the Palestinians had themselves to blame.

He told the BBC: "It is time that Yasser Arafat stopped subjecting the Palestinians to this kind of punishment".

You can not punish a whole nation for the actions of individuals or groups

Hanan Ashrawi, Palestinian politician

Israel blames the Palestinian Authority for the suicide bombings, even though the militant groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad say they carried out the attacks.

Israel says that Mr Arafat's men have been working directly with Hamas.

It also blames Yasser Arafat personally for releasing some extremists from Palestinian jails over the past few months.

Mr Sharon charged Mr Arafat with responsibility for the violence: "Unfortunately, he remains a leader of terror," he said.

Hannan Ashrawi, a member of the Palestinian assembly and former negotiator, was indignant.

"You can not punish a whole nation for the actions of individuals or groups," she said.

Crisis meeting

Mr Sharon began a special meeting of his security cabinet, called to discuss its response to the bombings, just a few minutes before the bombardment began.

Ariel Sharon: Retaliation

On Wednesday, Hamas released a videotaped recording made by one of the alleged suicide bombers, Dia Tawil.

He is blamed for the attack at a bus stop on the border between Israel and the West Bank in which two Israeli teenagers were killed and at least three others seriously injured.

Two more Palestinians also died during the day: A child who picked up an Israeli shell in Gaza, and a woman asphyxiated by Israeli teargas at Jenin, in the West Bank.

Since the Palestinian uprising or intifada started six months ago, almost 450 people have been killed, more than 360 of them Palestinian.

The bombardment came after the end of a two-day Arab summit in Jordan, in which leaders were united in their support for the Palestinian Authority.