The Palestinians arranged a “funeral” for an Arab who was still alive - all in order to create an impression of more casualties than there actually were. Cameras aboard an Israel Air Force pilotless plane captured the images of the “funeral,” which will be presented at a Foreign Ministry press conference this evening. The film was made on Sunday, April 28, at 7 AM. The “body” was first seen walking, then being wrapped in mourning cloth, and finally coming to “life” when the procession concluded. It is apparent that most of the “mourners” were not aware that the funeral was staged. The presentation of the film is the latest effort in Israel’s campaign to take the offensive in the ongoing public relations struggle with the Palestinians. The army says it is aware of other similar fake funerals, but that this was the first one it was able to film.

IDF troops operating in various areas of the Shomron last night arrested some 15 Arabs suspected of being involved in terrorist activity. The arrests took place in Tul Karem, the Shechem area, and in the village of Beita, east of Kfar Sava. The IDF had previously carried out anti-terror activities in these areas in the framework of Operation Defensive Shield, but were forced to cut them short in light of US and international pressure. Eight Arabs, including three children, were reported killed yesterday throughout Yesha - including at least one killed when an apparent Arab-placed bomb exploded in Bethlehem.

Five terrorists on their way to a major terrorist attack were caught outside Gush Katif last night. The driver of their car was only 15 years old, and they were caught wearing particularly powerful explosives vests… Arab gunfire was directed at an IDF force near the Israeli Gush Katif community of Gadid, and a bomb exploded aside another group of soldiers on the Israeli-Egyptian border; no one was hurt in either incident.

National Religious Party faction chairman MK Sha’ul Yahalom sent a letter to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon yesterday calling on him to instruct the IDF and security services to collect all the weapons from the PLO terrorists. Yahalom explained that the “large quantity of weapons seized or destroyed by the IDF - 5,000 arms - is dwarfed by the [40,000] weapons the terrorists still hold.” He said that “the slogan ‘bring down the PA’ has only one meaning: to collect all the weapons that the left-wing gave them under the Oslo Agreement. Halting the campaign before this goal is achieved will be doing half the job and will have no value.”

This entry was posted on Friday, May 3rd, 2002 and is filed under hotnews.