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Israel denies killing militants
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Israeli officials denied Wednesday killing local commanders of Hamas and the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades in the Jenin refugee camp. Palestinian medical sources identified the two as Allah Sabagh, the regional commander of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a military offshoot of Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement; and Imad Nasharti, the regional head of the Izzedine al Qassam, the military wing of Hamas. The U.S. State Department designates both groups as terrorist organizations. The men were killed when the house they were in exploded. The two had been on the Israel Defense Forces' wanted list for some time. Some witnesses reported seeing planes overheard, and Israeli tanks were also in the region at the time. However, Israeli commanders said they had nothing to do with the explosion. Some Palestinian sources were speculating that blast was a "work accident," a euphemism used in the Middle East when a bomb explodes prematurely. But Palestinian Cabinet minister Saeb Erakat condemned the killings, calling them assassinations. "We hold the Israeli government fully responsible. This will lead to more violence and bloodshed," Erakat said. It was unclear why the two leaders were in the same house. Other developments• A car driven by an apparent suicide bomber exploded Wednesday morning in northern Gaza near the Jewish settlement of Nissanit, Israeli and Palestinian sources said. The IDF said there were no injuries and its troops were combing the area. According to Palestinian security sources, a Palestinian man named Muhammad Ismail Mahdi died when he blew himself up in the vehicle. Mahdi was a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the security sources said. The PFLP is a Palestinian militant group that has committed numerous international terrorist attacks and has conducted attacks against Israeli or moderate Arab targets, according to the U.S. State Department. • The Palestine Red Crescent Society and Israeli security sources said Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian in the Askar refugee camp near Nablus in the West Bank. The Israeli sources said that Israeli forces on patrol identified "Palestinian suspects who were moving in the city despite the imposed curfew" and tried to arrest them, calling to them to halt and shooting into the air. "As the suspects didn't answer the calls, the IDF shot and killed one of the suspects," the military sources said. Israeli media identified the man as Jihad a-Natour, 24. Another curfew violator was arrested. There were media reports that a-Natour was going from alley to alley in the camp to announce the beginning of the dawn-to-dusk fast for Ramadan. • The IDF said 29 Palestinians were arrested overnight by Israeli forces in ongoing raids across the West Bank to round up terror suspects.
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