Israel Orders Removal of 6 Unauthorized Outposts

Israel ordered police and soldiers to remove six unauthorized Jewish outposts in the West Bank and evict their occupants as a step toward complying with the U.S.-backed Middle East peace plan, a senior official said.

The official said he didn't know when the removal of the first six outposts would occur.

In the West Bank town of Ramallah, meanwhile, Palestinian security officials detained at gunpoint a group of militants who had refused a request to leave Yasser Arafat's compound.