Israeli troops, Palestinians clash in Hebron

International mediators had demanded Palestinians name a Prime minister to carry out sweeping reforms seen as crucial to curbing the violence and reviving peace talks with Israel.

But Islamic militants repudiated the introduction of a Prime Minister as a ploy imposed by the United States and Israel to ‘‘crush resistance’’ and vowed to continue attacks on Israelis.

In the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, Israeli troops found the bodies of two Palestinians shot and killed overnight by soldiers who suspected they were laying landmines near the Jewish settlement of Kfar Darom, an Army spokesman said.

Palestinian witnesses said the two were killed in an exchange of fire with troops. In Hebron, a firefight broke out on Monday night after Palestinians ambushed Israeli troops near the Cave of the Patriarchs, the traditional burial place of the Biblical patriarch Abraham.

An Israeli soldier was killed in the gun battle. Armoured Israeli bulldozers demolished the house that the Army said was used to stage the ambush. A military source said a Palestinian was found dead in the rubble of the house and was presumed to be one of the gunmen.

Gunfire resumed from the area of the ruined house on Tuesday morning and Israeli troops responded. Shooting abated by mid-day but soldiers remained in the vicinity, prompting confrontations with angry crowds but no major incidents.

It was the latest round in persistent Israeli-Palestinian violence that has set back US hopes for calm as it seeks international support for a possible war against Iraq. Hebron has been a flashpoint for violence since the Palestinian uprising began in September 2000 after negotiations for the establishment of an independent state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip deadlocked. (Reuters)