Hezbollah Rocket Hits Israeli Club Med; 1 Killed, 7 Hurt

JERUSALEM —  Lebanese guerrillas attacked a busy seaside tourist resort on the northern coast of Israel on Friday, firing rockets from Lebanon that landed on a Club Med complex, killing a French cook and wounding at least seven other employees and guests.

The dawn attack, just north of Nahariya, marked the latest in a recent series of cross-border clashes between Hezbollah guerrillas and Israeli defense forces. And it added a new sense of urgency to talks planned in Washington next week between military chiefs of Israel and Syria.

Hezbollah, a Shiite Muslim group with close links to Iran and Syria, claimed responsibility for the attack on the tourist center, saying it fired 13 rockets into Israel to avenge an overnight shelling that killed a Lebanese civilian.

In a statement from Beirut, the group also declared that it would no longer respect a 1993 U.S.-brokered accord to limit hostilities because Israel had repeatedly attacked civilians, killing 13 in southern Lebanon this year.

Israeli officials seemed to send two signals Friday, warning of retaliation but also urging Syria to exert its influence on the Hezbollah guerrillas.

Uri Dromi, the Israeli government spokesman, warned of retaliation, saying, “We will have to defend ourselves, and when we do so, nobody should be surprised.”

Israeli television reported that Israel sent a message to Syria, through U.S. diplomats, warning that it would respond in kind to Hezbollah attacks.

But Israeli officials acknowledged Friday that some attacks intended for military targets in southern Lebanon had struck civilian areas.

Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres suggested that the latest assault was a reminder of the importance of talking with Syria, which Israel believes provides weapons and other support for the Lebanese guerrillas.

“We have to start our negotiations with Syria, and we would expect the Syrians to take stronger steps and show greater involvement in pacifying the area,” Peres said.

Meanwhile, in Gaza on Friday, Nasser Yousef, the Palestinian police chief, accused Israel of killing an Islamic Jihad activist in an attempt to delay the army’s withdrawal from the occupied territories in the West Bank.

Yousef said the assassination of Mahmoud Khawaja, who was shot by two gunmen in the Palestinian-controlled Gaza Strip on Thursday, had all the earmarks of an Israeli operation.

The police chief added that the killing was likely to prompt reprisals from radical Islamic groups against Israel. Israel has already delayed redeploying troops in the West Bank because of Islamic militant suicide bombings that have killed more than 70 Israelis in the past 15 months.

The rocket barrages Friday struck two areas in the north, but casualties were reported only at the Club Med resort, where 300 guests were staying. Hospital officials said the injured included four tourists from France and one from Spain.

“We’re worried, shocked and very sad,” said Antoine Cochin, secretary general of Club Med in Paris.

Guests and staff were evacuated, and the 500-bed facility was closed. The resort is outfitted with bunkers for guests to take refuge, Cochin said, but the attack Friday came without warning. It will remain closed for several weeks.

Tourists fled the area Friday, and Israeli officials said the rocket assault had dealt a blow to the country’s tourism industry.

“When it happens week after week, it’s a little hard to bring people back,” Yehuda Shavit, head of the western Galilee regional council, told Israel Radio on Friday.

At the same time, residents of southern Lebanon, fearing Israeli reprisals, were also leaving their homes on Friday, Lebanese radio said.

The tit-for-tat attacks across the 10-mile-wide zone that separates southern Lebanon from Israel have escalated in recent days, suggesting an effort by Hezbollah to disrupt any peace talks between Israel and Syria.

The ultimate success of the Mideast peace process, analysts say, depends heavily on an Israel-Syria accord.

Last week, Israeli shelling killed a Lebanese army soldier and wounded 12 people, including four civilians.

Hezbollah responded with rocket attacks into Israel, wounding eight. Then, last Sunday, Hezbollah guerrillas ambushed an Israeli army patrol, killing three soldiers in the bloodiest operation this year. Israel and its allies in the South Lebanon Army retaliated with attacks on villages, killing at least one civilian.