Israel seals off refugee camp, kills five

Israeli occupation troops killed five Palestinians, including a teenager, on Feb. 23 during the biggest raid against the West Bank in months, stoking tensions as Hamas held talks to form a new government. Five Palestinians died amid heavy shooting in the Balata refugee camp after more than 30 Israeli Army jeeps and four bulldozers piled into the area adjoining the city of Nablus. They sealed off the refugee camp of 18,000 people. Three of those killed were members of al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. They had exchanged fire with Israeli troops while holed up in a house. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas condemned the operation and warned it would endanger a cease-fire that has been in effect for a year, according to the Palestinian WAFA news agency. One of those killed was identified as Mohammad Shtawi, a top al-Aqsa member. "This is a war crime aimed at continuing the escalation and undermining Hamas efforts to form a government," said Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri. "We are committed to resistance and the occupation will pay the price for these crimes. We urge the international community to live up to its responsibilities and stop this massacre instead of asking our people to stop resisting." Earlier, fighting in Balata began at midmorning when several teens began throwing stones at one of the jeeps that broke down on the outskirts of the camp. Soldiers opened fire, killing one teenager. In another area, Palestinians threw stones at a jeep and soldiers opened fire, hitting one man in the jaw, witnesses said. An AP photographer who heard the shots and rushed to the scene found the man lying on the ground, with blood gushing from a large hole in his jaw. Bystanders quickly bundled him into an ambulance, and hospital officials later reported he was in serious condition. Also, a 22-year-old man was shot and killed by a bullet to the chest while he was standing on his roof in Balata, witnesses said. Witnesses said that troops had opened fire on Palestinian rescue workers and toward foreign peace activists, wounding three people. Also, Physicians for Human Rights-Israel charged that soldiers were impeding the movement of ambulances. Late that afternoon, they said, four ambulances were trapped inside the camp. An Israeli spokesperson said the army was investigating claims that soldiers at the scene had shot at ambulances.