A Step Toward Peace?

Men arrested after Hebron attack

Until recently Israel had not allowed Palestinian forces to patrol all parts of the West Bank [AFP] Palestinian officials have said arrests made after a shootout in which two Israelis and a Palestinian died are proof that security in the West Bank is improving. Riyad al-Malki, the Palestinian information minister, said on Saturday: "We have succeeded after several hours in arresting two members of the group behind the attack in Hebron. "This is a very big achievement and proves we can take over responsibility in all the Palestinian territories," he said. On Friday, Palestinian men opened fire on three Jewish settlers hiking near the southern West Bank city of Hebron, killing two of them. The two settlers, who were later identified as off-duty soldiers, fired back at the car, killing one Palestinian. et au la belle France? "Syrian-French relations continue even at this very moment," Syrian Information Minister Mohsen Bilal said Monday morning, a day after French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced that he was cutting all ties with the Presidential Palace in Damascus "until further notice."