GAZA, Jan. 12 (UPI) -- A Palestinian Authority commission said it will detain all Palestinians linked to a ship that Israel alleges was carrying weapons destined for the Palestinian Authority.
Meanwhile, the Israelis early Saturday continued their campaign of retaliation for the weapons-laden ship and a Wednesday raid by Palestinians that killed four Israeli soldiers.
A missile fired by an Israeli army helicopter destroyed a Palestinian police boat, Jandal, off the Gaza shore just after midnight Friday, Palestinian security sources told United Press International.
In Washington, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Friday that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat "has an obligation to take action" against those responsible for the 50-ton arms shipment intercepted by the Israelis on the vessel Karine A in the Red Sea last week.
Arafat set up the investigating commission on Monday.
"The commission decided as a precautionary measure to detain Fuad Shobaki, Fathi Razem and Aadel Awadallah and would continue questioning them," the comission's statement said Friday. The three suspects were in custody in the West Bank town of Ramallah, a Palestinian security source told UPI.
The Karine A, said to be owned by an Iraqi national, was seized Jan. 3. The vessel carried Katyusha rockets, mortar bombs, anti-tank weapons and C-4 explosives.
Israel said the arms were meant for the Palestinian Authority, and named Iran as the supplier. The PA and Iran have denied those allegations.
In briefing wire-service reporters, Powell said Friday, "What was in the ship violated the Oslo agreement," and that Arafat must arrest whoever organized the shipment.
Powell called Israel's demand that Arafat arrest anyone connected with the attempted smuggling operation "reasonable if the Palestinians know who did it."
Powell said he had spoken to Arafat about the ship "in straightforward American English." He told the reporters that Arafat "has a major problem with the ship, and it isn't going to go away."
On Friday, in the early morning and in the night, Israeli army armored vehicles and bulldozers destroyed the runway at the Gaza International Airport owned by the Palestinian Authority, Palestinian eyewitnesses and security sources reported.
The runway, which was built in 1999, had been used by Arafat in flying to other parts of the world as recently as a few months ago, although the airport itself was shut down by Israel about 15 months ago when the intifada began.
The $60 milion airport facility had been a source of pride for the Palestinians in providing access to the outside world.
The destruction of the runway "is a crime and a serious escalation that would lead to more tension and violence in the region," said Nabil Abu Rudeineh, an Arafat aide.
On Thursday, the Israeli army destroyed more than 70 Palestinian homes on the border between Rafah town and Egypt, leaving at least 120 families homeless, according to Palestinian residents and PA officials.
The Israel Defense Force spokesman said the Israelis destroyed buildings that had provided cover for attackers against Israeli troops. The IDF spokesman also said they suspected that the structures provided cover for tunnels used for arms smuggling.
A militant wing of Hamas had claimed responsibility for the Wednesday raid, in which two Palestinian militants also were killed, but Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has said that his administration considers "the Palestinian Authority fully responsible for what happened."
The Palestinian Authority had condemned the Hamas raid, saying, "It gives Sharon the excuse to resume his aggression and collective punishments on our people."
The surge in violence that began with the Hamas attack on Wednesday, has dampened hopes for progress in peace negotiations.
Israel has insisted on seven quiet days before implementing understandings and plans designed to lead to renewed negotiations with the Palestinians.
In other developments Friday, masked assailants stabbed a man in Jerusalem, and Israeli police spokesman Superintendent Yaakov Zrihen indicated the attackers were Palestinians. The attack occurred at a promenade that offers a view of the Old City's walls.
The injured man, whose name was not released, is believed to be about 50 years old. He was taken by ambulance to the hospital with injuries to the leg and abdomen. He told police several masked people stabbed him and disappeared, Zrihen said. No group has assumed responsibility for the attack.
Under the terms of various Middle East peace agreements, Palestinian security forces are only allowed light weapons, which the Israelis are supposed to supply them with.
Sharon has accused Arafat of being personally implicated in the smuggling plot.
Arafat has denied that he or the Palestinian Authority were involved in the arms smuggling attempt.
He has also urged the European Union, the United States, Russia and the United Nations to join an international inquiry into the incident.
If evidence turned up involvement by a Palestinian official, that official would be prosecuted, Arafat has said.
In interviews arranged Monday by the Israeli authorities, ship captain Omar Akawi, speaking from an Israeli prison, said he received the weapons off Iran's coast and was supposed to deliver them to smaller vessels off the Egyptian coast.
He said one of the men who loaded the deadly cargo was known to him as a member of the Lebanese Islamic guerrilla movement, Hezbollah. The United States has long said that Iran funds and arms Hezbollah.
(Saud Abu Ramadan in Gaza, Roland Flamini in Washington and Joshua Brilliant in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed to this story.)
