Unstoppable Terror

When Israel deported 415 alleged Islamic agitators last December, the idea was to curb attacks by fundamentalist Palestinians on Jewish soldiers and civilians. It hasn't worked, as evidenced by the casualties so far this month: 10 Israelis killed and 14 wounded. Clashes between protesters and security forces have also left nine Palestinians dead and some 400 injured. The expulsion of Hamas' political leadership has only freed its young gunmen to act more violently. "Now we need not have long discussions about the consequences of acting," says a field leader. "We just go ahead."

Adding to the sense of crisis was a mysterious shooting in the Gaza Strip that may have been an assassination attempt on Dr. Haidar Abdel-Shafi, the chief Palestinian negotiator in the Middle East peace talks. As a large group of Gazans left a private home, shots killed a Palestinian teacher standing six feet from Abdel-Shafi. He blamed panicky Israeli soldiers, but the military denied responsibility, and activists from the Red Eagles, a Palestinian group that opposes the peace talks, claimed credit.