Palestinians, some firing into the air, marked the third anniversary of their uprising for statehood on Sunday with vows to fight on against Israeli occupation until they achieved victory.

Palestinians carry a huge Palestinian flag during a mass anti-Israel march, marking the third anniversary of the beginning of the current period of conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, in the northern West Bank town of Nablus, Sunday, Sept. 28, 2003.  [AP]

Several thousand Palestinians shouted their defiance at a rally in the West Bank city of Nablus, one of few gatherings marking the anniversary of the start of a conflict which shows no sign of ending and has deepened hatred on both sides.

"We come here to show our determination to continue the Intifada (uprising) until we achieve freedom," Nablus Governor Mahmoud Aloul told the cheering crowd.

One group of Palestinians held a banner declaring: "As long as there is a single soldier or a Jewish settler pulling the trigger, we have to hit back the same way. If they pull the trigger with one finger, we should use 10 fingers."

Several thousand people also marched in the Gaza Strip in the past three days, and in a refugee camp in Lebanon, thousands of Palestinians joined the pledge to fight on. But otherwise there has been little celebration after bloodshed in which more than 2,000 Palestinians and over 800 Israelis have died.

Peace prospects are slim, with an international peace "road map" backed by the United States bogged down and each side saying the other should take the first steps to implement it.

Bassam Zakarneh, a 36-year-old Palestinian civil servant, said: "At the end of the day, we are people under occupation that should be resisted."

Spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, Raanan Gissin, said the victory Palestinians sought would result in the "ultimate destruction or annihilation of the Jewish state as it exists today."

DISPUTE OVER START OF UPRISING

Palestinians say violence was triggered by a visit to Jerusalem's al-Aqsa Mosque compound, one of Islam's holiest sites, on September 28, 2000, by Sharon, then leader of Israel's opposition and now prime minister.

The site is also revered by Jews as site of their biblical temple. Muslims saw the visit as a provocation but Sharon denies sparking the revolt, which Israel says was planned in advance.

Senior representatives of the "Quartet" peace mediators, grouping the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations, appealed to both sides on Friday to take steps to implement the road map.

But the tit-for-tat bloodshed continues. Shortly after they issued their appeal, a Palestinian gunman shot dead an Israeli settler and a baby at a Jewish settlement in the West Bank before he was shot dead himself.

The gunman, Mahmoud Hamedan, was recently released from a 14-month jail term in Israel. His uncle, Nassar Hamedan, told Reuters his nephew was from the militant Islamic Jihad group.

Israel says progress on the road map is possible only if the Palestinians crack down on militants who carry out attacks. Palestinians are demanding that Israel stop its own attacks against militants and other Palestinians, halt building Jewish settlements and ease military blockades.

In a step that could ease political turmoil holding up the road map, Palestinian leaders were in the final phase of approving a new cabinet under Prime Minister-designate Ahmed Qurei. He will seek parliament's approval this week.

Officials from Palestinian President Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement said Qurie had named Nasser Youssef as interior minister, taking over the responsibilities of former security affairs minister and U.S.-favorite Mohammed Dahlan.

Israel has not commented on the cabinet. It has said it would not work with any government controlled by Arafat.

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