Israeli media warn of 3rd Palestinian intifada amid tension

By Zain Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) - An Israeli newspaper warned Saturday of the outbreak of a third Palestinian intifada amid spiraling violence in the occupied territories.

On Friday, seven Israeli settlers were killed in a shooting attack near a synagogue in a Jewish settlement in occupied East Jerusalem.

The attack came a day after nine Palestinians were killed and dozens wounded in an Israeli military operation in the West Bank town of Jenin.

Israeli military commentator Ron Ben-Yishai said in the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper that the attack on the synagogue was "undoubtedly retaliation" for the Jenin military operation.

"Israel must immediately prevent further operations as well as retaliation by extremist Jews in Jerusalem," he added.

"This could be done by flooding the area with Israeli forces while avoiding major military operations in Palestinian cities at this time," the commentator said.

Ben-Yishai warned that recent developments in Jenin and Jerusalem "could raise the level of extreme violence, which has been relatively limited in recent months, to a real uprising involving masses of Palestinians and Jewish extremists"

Ben-Yishai warned that any major operation approved by the Israeli security cabinet "will fan the flames even more instead of pacifying the region"

"No major operation in Palestinian cities or in East Jerusalem neighborhoods is expected to achieve significant results, and it could only lead to fanning the flames and triggering an uprising," he warned.

Writing by Ahmed Asmar