Sharon criticized for failed siege

IN THE GAZA STRIP, meanwhile, a 43-year-old Palestinian woman was comatose after two Israeli tank shells hit her home and she was wounded by shrapnel, doctors and her brother said. Palestinians said the shells were fired without provocation.
The Israeli military denied tank shells were fired. It said soldiers fired assault rifles after mortar shells fell near an army post.
At Arafat’s headquarters in Ramallah, Israeli troops were out of sight Monday though they still controlled the town, as well as most other population centers in the West Bank.
A small bulldozer brought in by the Palestinians cleared some of the rubble; in the initial assault last week, Israeli troops leveled all but one building. Workers swept up shattered glass, fixed water pipes and tried to salvage air conditioners.



Ramallah residents, who had been under curfew for most of the siege, flocked to the largely demolished complex to take a closer look. Vendors quickly set up shop, selling ice cream, coffee and newspapers to the crowd.
Arafat adviser Nabil Abu Rdeneh said the outgoing Cabinet would meet Tuesday and that Arafat would resume consultations on appointing a new Cabinet. “Definitely, there should be a new Cabinet as soon as possible,” Rdeneh said.

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