Israeli Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon sent a tough message to Palestinians in a speech to parliament last night after his army killed ten people in the Gaza Strip with air strikes.
He said Palestinian President Mr Yasser Arafat was "the biggest obstacle to peace and therefore Israel is determined to bring about his removal from the political arena".
Despite his harsh words for his old enemy, Mr Sharon said he remained committed to the US-backed Middle East "road map" and even saw a real chance for progress towards a peace settlement with the Palestinians in coming months.
But Mr Sharon offered no new initiatives and reaffirmed many of his hardline policies, including the decision by his security cabinet last month to remove Mr Arafat eventually from power.
Chief Palestinian negotiator Mr Saeb Erekat accused Mr Sharon of undermining peace. Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurie said the Gaza air raids would not help efforts to end three years of conflict.
"Most of those killed are civilians. Its the bloodiest and most dangerous escalation in years," Mr Erekat said.
About 100 people were wounded in five air raids over a 12-hour period yesterday, including a missile strike after dark on a roadside crowd.
The attacks followed an ambush by gunmen in which three Israeli soldiers were killed in the West Bank and the launch of eight makeshift rockets from Gaza into Israel on Sunday.
In the bloodiest raid, medics said seven people were killed and at least 70 wounded in a missile attack after dark on the Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. One of the dead was a 12-year-old child, they said.