December 3, 2001	Monday	Ramazan 17, 1422

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GAZA CITY, Dec 2: The United Nation’s special coordinator for the Middle East, Terje Roed-Larsen, fears the unprecedented series of Palestinian suicide attacks against Israel could lead to a “war-like” state, a spokesman said on Sunday.

“Such catastrophic events as which happened last night and today have made the situation so bad and so desperate that it might quickly lead to a war-like situation, including a civil war-like situation,” the spokesman quoted Roed-Larsen as saying.

He was referring to the possibility that the attacks could create an open and armed conflict between groups like Hamas and Islamic Jihad and Yasser Arafat’s Palestinian leadership, which declared a state of emergency on Sunday in their wake.

Such a conflict in the Palestinian territories could ultimately lead to an all-out war between Palestinians and Israelis, he said.

“If it becomes a war-like situation it won’t be just isolated, the critical mass becomes in effect a war between Palestinians and Israelis,” Roed-Larsen warned.

The spokesman added that Roed-Larsen, currently in Norway, strongly condemned the three “murderous” attacks over the past 24 hours which have left 28 people dead and more than 210 wounded. —AFP