Sharon Wants to Strengthen Settlements Around Hebron.

By VOA News

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said he wants to strengthen Jewish settlements in the divided West Bank city of Hebron, where a Palestinian gunman killed 12 Israelis Friday.

Sharon said Sunday he wants to enlarge Israeli-administered areas of the city so there is territorial

Palestinian officials have once again called for international monitors in Palestinian areas, and say Israel must leave the occupied territories, including Hebron.

The victims in Friday's ambush included nine soldiers and policemen, along with three civilian security guards. Earlier reports said Jewish worshippers returning home from Sabbath prayers at the Tomb of the Patriarchs were among those killed. But all worshippers are now said to have returned home safely.

Hebron has been the scene of frequent clashes between Palestinians and Israelis. The city is home to about 450 Jewish settlers, who live in enclaves surrounded by 130,000 Palestinian residents.

Hebron is again under complete Israeli control. Dozens of armored vehicles are in place in strategic locations throughout the city and Israeli soldiers have established roadblocks and checkpoints all through the town.

The presence of the settlers in Hebron was negotiated in 1997 in a deal struck between Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat and then Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Now serving as foreign minister in an interim Israeli government, Netanyahu sees a very different solution for Hebron's problems. He says that agreement is now null and void, and he called on the international community for support.

Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for Friday's attack - a message that Jews aren't welcome. But the Israeli government has responded by saying that the settlers are here to stay and Israel will do whatever it takes to ensure their safety.