Israel Retaliates for Palestinian Attacks

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip, March 28 (AP) - Israeli helicopters rocketed targets belonging to Force 17, Yasser Arafat's guard unit, in Gaza and the West Bank, retaliating Wednesday night for a wave of bombings, the latest of which was a suicide attack that killed two Israeli teen-agers.

Red flares lit up the night sky over Ramallah in the West Bank during the assault, and flames leaped from burning buildings and cars as firemen attempted to extinguish multiple blazes.

In the air strikes, two Palestinians were killed in Ramallah, one a member of Force 17, the other a woman civilian, hospital doctors said. Overall, more than two dozen Palestinians were injured in Ramallah and Gaza, several critically, the doctors said.

All the targets in Ramallah and Gaza - including a headquarters building, a training camp and an arms depot - belonged to Force 17, which protects Arafat, the Palestinian leader. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has repeatedly accused Force 17 of involvement in attacks against Israeli civilians.

``We had ample evidence that forces of the Palestinian Authority, namely Force 17, were involved in terrorist activity in Israel,'' said Raanan Gissin, a spokesman for Sharon.

In Gaza City, the low-flying Israeli gunships blasted a Force 17 building that had been used as a weapons arsenal, and is only 100 meters (yards) from Arafat's house and 500 meters (yards) from Arafat's headquarters on Gaza's Mediterranean coast.

The Palestinians said the building had been empty for some time, but women and children screamed as they fled nearby buildings. The smell of gunpowder hung in the salty sea air after the assault.

Arafat was in Amman, Jordan, where Arab leaders wrapped up a two-day summit earlier Wednesday with pledges of financial aid to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority.

In the southern Gaza Strip, Israeli helicopter gunships hovered over the Force 17 building in Dir Al-Balach, unleashing six rockets. In Gaza City, four explosions were heard just north of the city. Palestinian police said the Israelis bombarded a police building in the area.

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