Israeli troops rounded up at least 1,000 Palestinians in the West Bank city of Tulkarm today in a fresh sweep for wanted militants after a suicide bomber from the region struck a nearby Israeli town.
Palestinian officials denounced the army swoop, accusing Israel of intensifying its clampdown on Palestinians seeking independence while the world's attention was turned to war in Iraq. Israel said the sweep was justified by security concerns.
Soldiers in tanks and armoured vehicles backed by helicopters imposed a curfew in Tulkarm and searched homes for militants before telling males aged 14 to 40 to gather in the courtyard of a school or face punishment, residents said.
Palestinian witnesses said about 2,000 people were rounded up. The Israeli army claimed it was about half that number.
At least 11 were identified as wanted militants and taken into custody, military sources said. Most others were freed after identity checks and some were still being questioned. Troops were also searching houses for weapons.
It was the largest round-up of Palestinians in Tulkarm for a year and came after an Islamic militant from a nearby village blew himself up outside a cafe in the Israeli seaside town of Netanya on Sunday, wounding 30 people.
