Israelis destroy Palestinian security center

No bodies found; Israelis assume wanted Palestinians died

A bulldozer finishes the demolishing of the Palestinian Authority's regional headquarters in Hebron on Saturday.

HEBRON, West Bank (CNN) -- Israeli soldiers are searching the rubble of the Palestinian security headquarters in Hebron for the bodies of up to 15 Palestinians wanted by Israel and believed to have sought refuge inside, the Israel army says.

Three explosions -- from a collective one ton of explosives laid by Israeli forces, according to the IDF -- ripped apart large sections of the West Bank compound late Friday.

Israeli Army Radio reported Saturday the army presumed the wanted Palestinians had died in the attack, however, Israel Defense Forces said no bodies have been found.

Palestinian security sources said the explosions destroyed 75 percent of the compound and left the rest barely standing. The blasts rocked the area soon after Israeli forces entered the compound and dropped off bags, according to these Palestinian sources.

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As smoke rose from the headquarters, Israeli military helicopters continued to hover above the site.

Israeli action followed terror attacks

Israel began military operations in the West Bank and Gaza following back-to-back suicide bombings that killed 26 Israelis in Jerusalem last week. Israeli forces have imposed a 24-hour curfew in many Palestinian cities. The Israeli military is now in control of seven of the eight major West Bank cities.

Last week's terror attacks were the latest in a series of suicide bombings and shootings that have claimed the lives of more than 220 Israelis since January this year.

For the past four days, Israeli forces had been in a standoff outside the complex trying to negotiate the surrender of Palestinian militants inside.

One Israeli commander said the large compound served as a "hotel" for terrorists.

In a statement made before the explosions, Brig. Gen. Ron Kitrey, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces, said the standoff "can be resolved in a short while," but he did not elaborate.

Kitrey expressed hope the wanted militants would give themselves up, but added: "We intend to fight terror wherever it exists, using methods appropriate to the circumstances and location."

More than 100 Palestinians have emerged from the complex during the standoff, but Israeli officials had said that between eight and 15 men remained holed up inside.

Earlier Friday, a Palestinian negotiator went inside to try to negotiate their peaceful surrender, but he left without making contact, saying he could not find anyone inside. The negotiator, Talal Sidr, said there were many parts of the complex he could not access.

Woman killed in Gaza

In a separate incident in Gaza, a Palestinian woman was killed and her husband injured in the Deir Balah refugee camp overnight Friday when they were caught in the crossfire of Israeli and Palestinian fighters, Palestinian security sources said.

The Palestinians had launched mortar bombs at the Israelis, who returned fire with tank shelling and shooting. The woman, 31, was hit by Israeli fire as she and her husband crossed a field on their way home Friday night. She died several hours later after an ambulance was delayed from entering the area. Her husband was slightly injured, the sources said.

The Israeli army said its soldiers heard an explosion, assumed it was a mortar bomb and returned fire.