Israeli forces move into 3 West Bank towns

An Israeli army soldier leads blindfolded and handcuffed Palestinian men to an armed vehicle in Nablus, Friday.

TULKAREM, West Bank (CNN) -- Israeli forces rolled into three West Bank towns Friday in search of suspected Palestinian militants and suicide bombers, military officials said.

About 10 Israeli armored personnel carriers drove into Tulkarem late Friday and ordered residents to stay inside their homes, Palestinian security forces said. The Israelis imposed a curfew after the incursion, which took place around 11 p.m. (4 p.m. EDT), the security forces said.

The Israel Defense Forces acknowledged its troops were in Tulkarem, but described the operation as a patrol searching for suspected suicide bombers, and predicted they would leave shortly.

The Tulkarem operation followed Israeli incursions late Thursday and Friday in Nablus, the West Bank's largest city, and the town of Qalqilya. Israel said its goal was to round up suspected militants.

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The incursions came after two Israelis were killed by a suicide bomber in Petah Tikva on Monday and after a Palestinian gunman shot and killed three teenage Jewish students at the Itamar settlement southeast of Nablus on Tuesday.

Heavy gunfire and tank shelling was heard after 13 armored IDF personnel carriers and 10 tanks surrounded the Balata refugee camp in Nablus on Friday, Palestinian security sources reported.

The IDF confirmed the incursion into the Palestinian-controlled area but gave no details other than to say the raid was aimed at arresting those accused of being involved in terrorist activities.

Among those arrested was Issam Abu Baker, head of Palestinian Authority President Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement in Nablus, Israel radio reported. The arrest was later confirmed by his family.

The IDF also moved into the West Bank city of Qalqilya overnight, the IDF added.

Tenet heads back to region

In the Jewish West Bank settlement of Shavei Shomron, a settler shot and killed a Palestinian man Friday who had infiltrated the settlement near Nablus, the IDF said.

The man had set off an explosive device before he was shot, Israel said. According to IDF, the man was carrying hand grenades and a rifle.

The suicide bomber that struck Petah Tikva was a cousin of one of three Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade members who were killed earlier by Israel. The cousin's family home was destroyed by Israel Friday.

The Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades is a military offshoot of Fatah and has carried out numerous attacks against military targets and civilians in Israel and in Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Gaza. In March, the U.S. State Department designated the group as a foreign terrorist organization.

CIA Director George Tenet headed to the Middle East on Friday for consultations with Israeli and Palestinian security officials to discuss the prospects for renewed security cooperation between the two sides, officials said.

Tenet proposed a cease-fire and security plan in June 2001 that urged Israeli and Palestinian security organizations to reaffirm commitments to agreements under the April 2001 Mitchell report.

The Mitchell report calls for a resumption of security cooperation, a halt to the construction of Jewish settlements in the Palestinian territories, a denunciation of terrorism and resumption of peace talks.

Neither of these cease-fire plans have yet been implemented, and Israeli-Palestinian violence has continued steadily despite a monthlong Israeli offensive in the West Bank.

In a separate development, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has appointed his foreign policy adviser, Dani Ayalon, to be Israel's ambassador to the United States, the prime minister's office announced Friday.