Israelis Destroy Palestinians Food Supply

The Israeli army (IDF) has become embroiled in a dispute with the United Nations after it destroyed a building containing hundreds of tons of food aid for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The UN Secretary General Kofi Annan said in a statement that he was "extremely concerned" at the destruction of the depot and supported WFP calls for the
Israeli Government to conduct a full investigation into the incident.

"The secretary general once again calls on the Israeli authorities to live up to their commitments and obligations to facilitate emergency humanitarian assistance
in the occupied Palestinian territory," the statement added.

The head of the European Commission (EC) in Jerusalem, Jean Breteche, called the army's action "unjustified".

Building searched

In continuing violence, three Palestinians were shot dead by Israeli troops, while a fourth died when a missile fired by Palestinian militants fell short of its target,
according to some Palestinian reports.

Israel on Monday announced plans to demolish buildings claimed by Palestinians in the West Bank city of Hebron.

The army said it had obtained a warrant to destroy the buildings to create a safe passage for Jews between a nearby Jewish settlement and Jewish enclaves
inside Hebron.

According to WFP officials, Israeli troops and dogs entered and searched the three-storey warehouse in the town of Beit Lahiya on Saturday night.

The BBC's correspondent in Gaza, James Rodgers, said witnesses described seeing dynamite being laid and then a series of explosions destroyed the warehouse.

Our correspondent said two Palestinians were killed and three buildings demolished in the raid.

'Food clearly marked'

An Israeli army spokeswoman said "we are still investigating the circumstances of why the warehouse was hit".

The WFP said the building was clearly marked with a UN flag, and the food containers were labelled with WFP stickers.

They said the store contained 500 metric tons of flour, rice and vegetable oil, intended for distribution to the poorest families in Gaza to celebrate the
forthcoming Muslim feast of Eid.

The food, donated by the European Commission, was valued at more than $270,000.

"WFP should have been permitted to remove the food. This act has been carried out against basic humanitarian principles," local programme director Jean-Luc
Siblot said in a statement.