By IPS Correspondents
QALQILIYA, Mar 21 2003 (IPS)

The Israeli occupation forces today arrested Raed al-Hawtadi, the leader of the Islamic Resistance Hamas movement in the city of Qalqiliya, north of the West Bank, together with 12 others through a campaign of arrests and combing they carried out throughout the West Bank, Radio Israel said.

The radio monitored here on Friday said the overall security cordon is still clamped on the West Bank and Gaza Strip at a time the Israeli forces are mounting their security measures to prevent any suicidal operations inside Israel.

Meanwhile Israeli embassies, consulates and Jewish institutions around the world have been placed on high alert for fear terrorists will target them in retaliation for the attack on Iraq, Israel media reported Friday morning.

Israeli diplomats have also been ordered to maintain a low profile, the reports said.

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