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Israel: Suicide bombings are 'declaration of war' against AbbasLatest blast is fifth in spate of terrorist attacks
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- A senior Israeli official Monday called a series of suicide attacks in Israel a "declaration of war" by militant Islamic groups against new Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas. The latest attack came Monday when a suicide bomber set off a blast at a shopping mall entrance in the northern Israeli city of Afula, killing three people and wounding 47 others, 13 of them seriously, Israeli police said. It was the fifth terror attack in the region since Saturday -- the day top Israeli and Palestinian leaders met for the first time in more than two years. The attacks, including Monday's bombing, have killed 12 Israelis. "We are in a tidal wave of homicide, suicide bombings launched against us," said Ra'anan Gissin, an adviser to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. "This is a clear declaration of war by the Islamic radical groups." He accused Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat of trying to ruin the government of Abbas, popularly known as Abu Mazen. Gissin called the bombings a test of Abbas' leadership. "Abu Mazen is expected to take some real steps and perhaps very hard decisions after this spate of terrorist attacks," Gissin said. Palestinian officials have condemned the attacks and, within hours of them, announced reforms to Palestinian security forces. "We are disappointed at this wave of suicide bombings," said Nasser Al-Kidwa, the Palestinian observer to the United Nations. At the same time, he said, 70 Palestinians have been killed since the U.S.-backed "road map" to Middle East peace was introduced. Extremists on both sides, Al-Kidwa said, "do not want to see this road map existing and proceeding." Mohammed Dahlan, the Internal Security Minister and acting Minister of Interior, late Monday announced reforms to the Palestinian security forces, combining security elements and naming new security chiefs to the posts. He said all of the internal security apparatuses will report directly to him as he works to unify the missions of the security forces. At the bomb scene in Afula, glass, debris and body parts were strewn about. Palestinian sources said the bomber was a 19-year-old woman from a village near Jenin in the northern West Bank. Israeli police said the bomber had been stopped by a security guard at a gate outside the mall when she detonated herself. The security guard was among those killed. Two radical Islamic groups claimed responsibility -- the Islamic Jihad and the al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the militant wing of Palestinian leader Arafat's Fatah movement. The U.S. State Department considers Islamic Jihad a terrorist organization. Just before the spate of attacks began Saturday night, the peace process saw a glimmer of hope with a historic meeting between Sharon and Abbas, who has publicly called for a cease-fire by Palestinian extremist groups. Sharon had planned to travel Tuesday to Washington to discuss the U.S.-backed road map for peace, but he postponed the trip in the wake of the attacks. In Washington, President Bush said the road ahead is "bumpy," but added he is confident "we can move the peace process forward." "It's clear there are people there who cannot stand the thought of peace," he said. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said, "The peace process begins best with actions by the Palestinian authorities to crack down on those that would derail the peace." In addition to the attack in Afula, there have been four others in a span of 48 others: • Earlier Monday, a Palestinian riding a bicycle blew himself up in Gaza, killing himself and slightly wounding three Israeli soldiers. Izzedine al Qassam, the military wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for that attack. • On Sunday, a bus bombing in Jerusalem killed seven people, plus the bomber. Hamas claimed responsibility for that attack. Hamas is considered a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. • Also on Sunday, a suicide bomber in East Jerusalem blew himself up after being caught between roadblocks. No one else was killed. • Saturday night, a suicide bombing in Hebron killed an Israeli man and his pregnant wife. Izzedine al Qassam claimed responsibility for that attack. In response to the attacks, Israel closed its West Bank border Sunday, preventing all Palestinians from entering Israel. Ismail Abu Shanab, a founder of Hamas and its spokesman, said Monday that his group's "martyrdom operations" are aimed at ending Israel's occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. "We are in a position of self-defense," he said. Israeli U.N. Ambassador Danny Gillerman accused the new Palestinian prime minister of not doing enough to crack down on terrorists. "He's been prime minister for nearly three weeks and has done nothing -- and what we're seeing now ... is an exact result of Abu Mazen's unwillingness to face terror," he said. Afif Safieh, Palestinian representative to the United Kingdom, said the road map, aimed at achieving a secure Israel and an independent Palestinian state by 2005, was "launched in unpromising conditions because Sharon did not yet endorse it."
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