Israeli forces enter the Bethlehem refugee camp

Israeli forces entered the Dheisheh refugee camp near Bethlehem briefly early today, Israeli military sources said.

The sources, speaking on condition of anonymity, said an army patrol moved into the camp after midnight, remained inside for several hours and left without making arrests.

Israeli forces have been entering Palestinian towns, villages and refugee camps almost every night for several weeks.

Early yesterday, soldiers moved into the town of Ramallah, taking up positions around Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s headquarters and elsewhere in the town and making dozens of arrests.

The troops were still holding their positions in Ramallah early today. A curfew was in force, confining Palestinians to their homes. Israeli Defence Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said the operation would last one or two days.