The Palestinian Authority continues to spread lies and libels about Friday´s events on the Gaza beach, even though it now seems certain that Israel was not responsible for the civilian deaths.

The latest PA story is that a Palestinian artist is in the hospital with burns over his body after handling the shrapnel from the "Israeli bombs." The bombs were then examined and found to give off radiation, sup osedly because Israel had contaminated the bombs with "depleted uranium."

The following is the story in the PA official daily, which is under the control of the office of Mahmoud Abbas:

"The enemy committed its attacks on Gaza and killed its victims . My friend, the sculptor and painter, Fayiz Al-Sarsawy, went to one of the bombing sites... to collect the shrapnel of death that the crazed bombing left in order to make a statue of the Palestinian suffering. A friend who assists him would clean the shrapnel...

That night Fayiz received a unsettling call from his friend who assists him: "I am talking to you from the hospital and I´m asking you not to touch the shrapnel you´ve collected." An infection had formed on the hand of this friend and spread to what looked like burn marks on his skin. When he touched sensitive areas in his body a suspicious swelling appeared.

Experts arrived and took samples of the shrapnel. Later, they asked for all the shrapnel and explained: The shrapnel was treated with some form of depleted uranium, that releases slow and dangerous radiation.

This is not a movie from imagination of Rambo, but actual reality. The shrapnel exists and can be shown to anyone interested. Yassir Arafat warned us of the existence of Depleted Uranium in the Israeli shrapnel, and the army uses Napalm."
[Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, June 12, 2006]