Israel on High Alert for Possible "Most Serious" AttacksIsraeli army soldiers and policemen are on high alert Sunday morning for possible "most serious" attacks in Israel's major cities, security sources said.Israeli intelligence establishment claimed that it received " clear and immediate" reports that Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), the Islamic Jihad, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, were planning a large-scale attack against Israeli targets. The army and police had set up roadblocks on main entrances to all major Israeli cities, especially in the Gush Dan area around Tel Aviv, which was widely regarded as the major target. They also increased their deployment along the Green Line between Israel and the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip to head off possible attacks, the security sources said. Israel and the Palestinians have engaged in bloody clashes for more than nine and a half months, during which over 600 people, mostly Palestinians, had been killed. Following a suicide bombing attack in Tel Aviv on June 1, which killed 21 Israelis and the suicide bomber, the two sides reached a ceasefire under the auspices of the United States. However, the situation on the ground turned bad since last Thursday, when one Israeli and three Palestinians were killed in violence in a 24-hour period. The Palestinian casualties may prompt the Palestinian militant groups to launch retaliation attacks. |
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