Quds city, Oct 25, SPA -- Israeli troops raided a Gaza Strip refugee camp to halt Palestinian mortar fire, killing 13 Palestinians and wounding 66 Monday, as Israel's parliament set up for a historic debate on a withdrawal from the coastal strip. In Al-Quds city, thousands of police were being deployed, particularly around parliament, and helicopters were kept on standby to fly legislators to the building in case demonstrators try to block access roads. Thousands of marchers were expected to surround parliament at the start of the debate Monday afternoon. The session was to begin with a speech by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, followed by brief remarks by nearly all the 120 legislators. A vote was expected Tuesday evening, and Sharon's aides said he is counting on a comfortable victory. "The train has left the station, the implementation is under way," government spokesman Raanan Gissin said of Sharon's plan. "After the Knesset vote on Tuesday we will be in an irreversible process." Settler families would be paid between US$200,000 to US$350,000 in compensation. Sharon hopes settlers will accept cash advances _ which could total up to one-third of the final compensation payout _ to leave well ahead of the official evacuation, heading off confrontations between settlers and troops. The Cabinet also approved penalties, including prison terms, for those resisting. The guidelines will be turned into a bill and sent to parliament. Early Monday, scores of Israeli armored vehicles moved into the Khan Younis refugee camp in southern Gaza in an operation the army said was sparked by recent mortar attacks on nearby Israeli settlements. The raid, punctuated by repeated airstrikes and the firing of tank shells, killed 13 Palestinians and wounded 66, doctors said. Among the dead were several members of the Palestinian security forces and an 11-year-old boy. Seventeen of the wounded were under the age of 18. Two Israelis soldiers were wounded when Palestinians fired an anti-tank missile at their armored personnel carrier, the army said. The army said it demolished the home of a local Hamas leader who was responsible for attacks that killed eight Israelis.
