RAFAH REFUGEE CAMP, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli army
bulldozers flattened 30 houses and a mosque in this refugee camp
yesterday, Palestinian officials said, accusing Israel of
systematically razing homes to widen a military buffer zone.

The military said it only targeted buildings from which shots
were fired overnight at Israeli forces, but did not know how many
structures were demolished.

Frantic residents threw mattresses and blankets from
second-floor windows as beams and walls came crashing down around
them. One woman, standing near a bulldozer, waved a white flag in a
failed attempt to slow the demolition and buy time to salvage her
belongings. A crying girl helped her mother carry a mattress.

Army officials initially insisted the razed houses had been
empty, but then said the claim was still being checked. The
governor of Rafah, Majed Agha, said about 400 people were left
homeless.

Israel has demolished hundreds of houses in Rafah, near the
Egyptian border, in more than three years of fighting, saying the
buildings gave cover to gunmen and weapons smugglers.

The Palestinians say Israel is clearing large swaths in the camp
to distance built-up areas from the narrow strip Israeli troops
patrol along the Egyptian border. Israel has erected a tall metal
barrier south of the camp as a shield for troops. The destruction
is part of a plan by Israel “to create a wide buffer zone and
consolidate Israeli military control in the area,” Agha
said.

Also razed yesterday was a neighborhood mosque, Al Tawhid, which
had been partially demolished Saturday, residents said. The mosque
is about 70 yards from the Israeli metal barrier. “This is a
crime against God’s law and human law as well,” said
preacher Ibrahim Abu Jazar.

The military said it was still checking the report on the
mosque. In the past three years, troops have generally stayed clear
of holy sites.

In the West Bank, Israeli security forces trying to dismantle a
synagogue in a West Bank settlement outpost wrestled with dozens of
settler activists. Troops left half a dozen trailer homes at West
Tapuah outpost untouched.

It was the first attempt by the army to remove a structure from
a populated outpost since June. Dror Etkes of Peace Now, an Israeli
group that opposes the settlement movement, said the demolition was
a meaningless display, noting that settlers simply rebuild such
structures after soldiers leave.

Under the U.S.-led “road map” peace plan, Israel has
to remove dozens of settlement outposts, but has taken down only a
few. The Palestinians have also failed to meet their first
obligations, including a clampdown on militant groups.

Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia, meanwhile, asked
foreign diplomats to urge their governments to speak out against
Israel’s separation barrier in the West Bank, ahead of a Feb.
23 hearing by the world court.

The Palestinians have asked the International Court of Justice
to rule on the legality of the barrier, which has severely
disrupted the daily lives of tens of thousands of Palestinians. The
Palestinians say the barrier amounts to a land grab and will make
it impossible to create a viable Palestinian state in the West Bank
and Gaza.

“We ask the entire world to restrain the Israeli madness
of expansion,” Qureia said after meeting with more than a
dozen diplomats. “This is a wall of annexation and expansion,
not for security.”

Israel says it needs the divider to keep out Palestinian
attackers who have killed hundreds of Israelis in bombings since
September 2000.

On Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon ordered a review
of the barrier, saying minor changes in the route and technical
arrangements could be made to lessen the hardship it creates for
Palestinians. Israel has been looking for ways to deflect growing
international criticism of the barrier.

Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said yesterday he opposes
any revisions.