Settlers free to circulate as Palestinians confined to their homes

Hebron and the neighbouring town of Halhoul, in the south of the West Bank, await Israeli reoccupation. The Mayor of Halhoul, Mr Muhammad Milhem, observes: "We are living in a period where we cannot tell what happens the next minute. For the past seven to 10 days people have been making preparations for any emergency."+

While I sat in his office in the grand new Halhoul Municipality building, Mr Milhem telephones round to fellow mayors in the district. The mayor of Yatta "is assessing damage to homes. Three Palestine Authority offices have been destroyed," Mr Milhem says. "The mayor of Doura is negotiating with the Israeli army over the evacuation of dead and wounded. A blind university professor and political activist from the Atrash family has been assassinated in Doura," Mr Milhem states after putting down the phone.

"There have been no incidents here. These villages are far from the settlements. The Israelis want to destroy the Authority and send us a political message: 'We are here. We can come in at any time'. They want an alternative leadership. But there is no alternative to Arafat."