- NABLUS, West Bank (Reuters)
- Israeli soldiers opened fire at a Palestinian taxi at a spot roadblock
in the West Bank Saturday, killing a woman passenger.
-
- An Israeli military source said soldiers fired at the
vehicle, hitting the woman, after it broke through the roadblock near the
city of Nablus and its driver ignored warning shots from troops who gave
chase for about a kilometer (half a mile).
-
- Palestinian medics and witnesses said Kamleh al-Shooli,
20, and other seven passengers from the village of Asira al-Shamaleya had
been on their way to Nablus before sunrise to avoid early Israeli patrols
in the area.
-
- She died immediately after being hit by two bullets to
the chest, the medics said.
-
- "The driver was detained and taken for questioning,"
the military source said. "The incident is under investigation by
field commanders. We are trying to figure out what they were thinking when
they burst through the roadblock."
-
- Israel maintains that roadblocks are vital to stop suicide
bombers who have killed hundreds of Israelis since the start of a Palestinian
uprising in September 2000. Palestinians and human rights group call such
measures collective punishment.
- © Reuters 2003. All Rights Reserved.
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