Israeli Army vacates "Joseph's Tomb" -- Military source
AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE

JERUSALEM, OCT 7: The Israeli Army vacated at dawn on Saturday the key site known as "Joseph's Tomb" in the northern West Bank town of Nablus, handing control over to Palestinian police, an Israeli military source said.

The dozen Israeli soldiers who had been patrolling the site were withdrawn along with their equipment after which Palestinian police officers took control of the area, the source said.

The decision was taken by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, on the recommendation of Army Chief-of-Staff General Shaul Mofaz. Joseph's Tomb, in the Balata refugee camp, was an Israeli enclave in the Palestinian-ruled town of Nablus. It has been a frequent centre of tension.

On October 1, an Israeli border guard was killed by Palestinian fire. The Palestinian authorities had often demanded that Israeli forces leave the area which, until recently, housed a Jewish seminary. The troop withdrawal was "temporary", the source said. At least 86 people -- mainly Palestinians have died in nine days of violence which began in Jerusalem after Israeli Opposition leader Ariel Sharon visited a site sacred to Muslims as well as Jews.

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