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Israel attacks training camp in Syria, IDF says

Israel to 'enlarge scope' of anti-terror operations

Sunday, October 5, 2003 Posted: 8:53 AM EDT (1253 GMT)

JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Israeli military
attacked a training camp used by
Palestinian terrorists in Syria, the Israel
Defense Forces said Sunday morning.

The camp, said to be deep inside Syria, was
used for training by "many terror
organizations," including Islamic Jihad, the
IDF said.

A spokesman for the Islamic Jihad denied
there were any Islamic Jihad training bases in
Syria. He said they engage in no military
activities outside of the Palestinian territories.

This attack came late Saturday night or early
Sunday morning, just hours after a terrorist
suicide bombing in Haifa, Israel, on Saturday
afternoon killed 19 people.

Israeli government spokesman Ra'anan Gissin
said the camp was just 10 miles from the
Syrian capital Damascus. Gissin disputed the
Islamic Jihad claim to have no camps in Syria.

"We will take whatever measure is necessary
to defend our citizens regardless of
geographical location of these training camps,"
Gissin said.

Israel, he said, decided "to enlarge the scope of
our operation against the Islamic Jihad and
Hamas."

The attack, Gissin said, sends a message to
Syria and Iran to end their support for
Terrorism against Israel.

"We will not tolerate the continuation of this
axis of terror between Tehran, Damascus and
Gaza to continue to operate and kill innocent
men, women and children," he said.

Terror in Haifa

Nineteen people died and at least 50 people
were wounded Saturday when a female suicide
bomber walked into the popular Arab-owned
restaurant, Maxim, at the southern entrance of
Haifa, a Mediterranean port city.

Much of the restaurant, which police said was
filled with families and had a security guard,
was destroyed. (Full story)

Shortly after Saturday's terrorist attack in
Haifa, an Israeli Apache helicopter fired at
least two rockets at a house in Gaza City,
Palestinian sources said.

The house belonged to Rezik Kamita, who
security sources said belongs to either Islamic
Jihad or Hamas. Kamita's son is a member of
Hamas' military wing, Izzedine al Qassam, and
was targeted by Israeli forces a few weeks ago
in Gaza City, the sources said.

There was no one inside the house at the time,
sources said. There was no information on
deaths or injuries.

Israelis
also
launched
a
second
airstrike
at
the
Al-Bureij
refugee
camp
in
central
Gaza, security sources said. They fired five
rockets at a home, and one person was left
slightly injured, sources said. (Full story)

Tensions between the Israelis and Palestinians have heightened in recent weeks after a string of
Palestinian terror attacks against Israelis and deadly Israeli strikes on Palestinian extremist
group members that also have killed and wounded Palestinian bystanders.

Hamas, a Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist group, is designated a terrorist organization by the
U.S. State Department. Izzedine al Qassam has admitted responsibility for terrorist attacks
against Israeli civilians as well as attacks against the Israeli military.

Islamic Jihad, a militant group dedicated to the creation of an Islamic Palestinian state and the
destruction of Israel, has carried out military operations against Israeli soldiers and civilians. It
is also considered a terrorist organization by the United States and Israel. Tweet