DATE=03/22/02

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=ISRAEL / PALESTINIANS (S UPDATE)

NUMBER=2-287854

BYLINE=MEREDITH BUEL

DATELINE=JERUSALEM

CONTENT=

VOICE AT:

/// EDS: UPDATES 2-287853 ///

INTRO: A suicide bomber has blown himself up near an Israeli military checkpoint in the West Bank. V-O-A Correspondent Meredith Buel in Jerusalem reports at least one person was injured in the blast.

TEXT: The bomber killed himself close to an Israeli army checkpoint near the West Bank town of Jenin. It was not immediately clear if the explosives went off prematurely, or if the checkpoint was the intended target.

Three suicide bombings in the last three days have killed at least ten Israelis.

The latest attack came shortly after Israeli and Palestinian security officials resumed cease-fire talks, in an effort to end nearly 18-months of violence. Truce talks were canceled Thursday, after a Palestinian suicide bombing in downtown Jerusalem killed three Israelis.

On Friday, U-S envoy Anthony Zinni met with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in the West Bank town of Ramallah, as tentative peace efforts continue to be threatened by violence. At the meeting, Mr. Zinni appeared angry and Chairman Arafat seemed dejected, resting his head in his left hand.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a group linked to Mr. Arafat's Fatah movement, claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing in Jerusalem, prompting the United States to include the armed faction on its list of foreign terrorist organizations. (SIGNED)

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