Israel to Withdraw Troops From West Bank Within 1 Week: Sharon

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, April 16, 2002

Israel to Withdraw Troops From West Bank Within 1 Week: Sharon

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Monday Israeli troops occupying two major cities in the Palestinian West Bank will withdraw within a period of between two days to one week.

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Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Monday Israeli troops occupying two major cities in the Palestinian West Bank will withdraw within a period of between two days to one week.

''We don't have any intention to stay in those cities of terror...once our mission is accomplished, we'll be leaving,'' Sharon said in an interview from Jerusalem broadcast on CNN.

Sharon said troops will first be pulled out from Jenin and Nablus in ''maybe two days...within a week.''

''We have a problem in Bethlehem,'' Sharon said, referring to the standoff between Israeli soldiers and Palestinian militants in the Church of the Nativity which has continued since late last week.

About 200 militants must surrender before Israeli troops withdrew from Bethlehem, Sharon said. He confirmed that an agreement had been made with the United States to allow some of the Palestinians in Bethlehem to leave Israel.

''Israel sticks to its commitments,'' Sharon said, noting that those not expelled would be tried by Israeli courts.

The situation in Ramallah, where Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and his aides have been confined by a state of siege at their headquarters, similarly presented an obstacle to withdrawal, Sharon said.

Calling the Palestinian militants ''murderers of Jerusalem,'' Sharon said reports of a ''massacre'' at the Palestinian camp at Jenin were greatly exaggerated, with civilian casualties not more than ''a few dozen.''

Palestinian officials have said up to 500 people died when Israeli troops stormed the Jenin camp last week.

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