Israel steps up security

JERUSALEM -- Israeli troops have stepped up security and reinforced the border between Israel and Palestinian-ruled territories after a weekend of violence.

Troops replaced police in public places as Israel aims to prevent further attacks inside its borders as the incoming government of Prime Minister-elect Ariel Sharon weighs how to respond to the latest violence.

Four people were killed on Sunday in a suicide bomb attack in the Mediterranean resort city of Netanya.

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Sharon called for calm following the bombing, which killed an 84-year-old man, his 58-year-old niece and a 70-year-old woman along with the bomber. At least 68 others were wounded in the second fatal explosion in four days.

The incoming leader also called on Israelis to show restraint and to avoid taking the law into their own hands after a mob beat and seriously injured a Palestinian man near the scene of the bombing. Police arrested one person and were looking for three others in the attempted lynching.

AUDIO CNN's Jerrold Kessel: This is perhaps the bloodiest weekend in the ongoing conflict 1 Mb/94 secs. AIFF or WAV sound RESOURCES Mideast Peace TIMELINES Recent acts of violence in the Middle East: ´ Bombings ´ Activist deaths ALSO Iraq blasts U.S. for opposing aid to Palestinians

Sharon -- who beat outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Barak with pledges to restore Israelis' sense of security -- has accused Yasser Arafat's Palestinian Authority of direct involvement in attacks on Israel.

As Israelis buried those killed in Sunday's bombing, Palestinians held a funeral on Monday for a 21-year-old man killed in a fierce overnight battle between Palestinian gunmen and Israeli troops in the northern part of the West Bank. The procession was marked by shouts of "Revenge" and mourners vowing, "Tomorrow, we shall bombard Tel Aviv."

Sharon intends to present a broad-based national unity government led by his conservative Likud party to the Knesset, Israel's parliament, on Wednesday.

With a coalition ranging from the powerful religious party Shas, which agreed to join the government Sunday, to the Labor Party on the left, he appears to have a free hand to adopt whatever policy he deems necessary toward the Palestinians.

"The situation is grave from an Israeli point of view, probably on the verge of an explosion," Israeli political analyst Chemi Shalev said. "There's a consensus both in the security establishment and in public opinion, and among most ministers in the government, that Israel needs to escalate its response to Palestinian terror."

Meanwhile, Palestinians marked the start of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha on Monday in a somber mood. Arafat laid a wreath at the memorial to the Palestinian unknown soldier, repeating vows of defiance.

"The Palestinian people, in spite of the closure and the dangerous military escalation and the starvation, will continue the way until we raise the Palestinian flag over the walls of Jerusalem -- over the minarets and the churches of Jerusalem," Arafat said.

Before Sunday's bombing, more than five months of Israeli-Palestinian clashes had claimed the lives of 377 Palestinians, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society, and 62 Israeli Jews, 13 Israeli Arabs and one German, according to Israel Defense Forces.

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Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Israeli Prime Minister's Office
Israel Defense Forces
Palestinian National Authority

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