Your Web Site
— Israeli troops stormed the shopping mall in this West Bank city Tuesday and ordered it to close, saying the popular facility is linked to the militant Islamic Hamas. The overnight move was the latest in a widening crackdown on the militant Islamic group in the West Bank, even as Israel observes a cease-fire with the Hamas regime in the Gaza Strip. Israel kept a vital Gaza cargo crossing open though Palestinians fired three mortar shells at Israel on Tuesday, violating a three-week-old truce. Hamas condemned the Nablus operation as "provocative." Palestinian witnesses said the troops surrounded the Nablus Mall after midnight, sealing the building and posting closure orders in shop windows. "There were dozens of soldiers, lots of jeeps," said Ali Ashur, 28, who owns a cell phone shop. He said he rushed to the scene about 2... [read full story]
