Palestinian killed in West Bank firefight

Israel continues to blockade Palestinian areas

A Palestinian civilian has been killed in a gun battle between Israeli troops and Palestinian gunmen sheltering in a house on the West Bank, Palestinian sources say.

Israeli soldiers and tanks encircled the house in the Palestinian-ruled town of Jenin after troops came under attack at a nearby Israeli army post, according to Israeli military officials.

Members of Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction were arrested in the raid on Azzoun

Earlier, Israel arrested 18 people in a raid on a Palestinian village on the West Bank, whom Israel said were connected with terrorist activities.

And in an easing of conditions for the Palestinians, Israel lifted its blockade of the West Bank town of Jericho, which has been under closure for most of the past 15 months of fighting between the two sides.

In Jenin, 53-year-old Walid Saadi was killed by Israeli helicopter fire as a firefight erupted between Israeli forces and two Palestinian gunmen, French news agency AFP reported.

Israeli tanks fired two shells at the building after penetrating about 1000 feet (300 metres) into the Palestinian-controlled territory, military sources said.

According to the army, Israeli troops pursued the gunmen into Jenin after coming under attack near the Jewish settlement of Kadim.

Palestinian officials said two people, including a Palestinian policeman, were also wounded in the fighting.

Village raided

Continuing its offensive against suspected Palestinian militants, about 300 Israeli soldiers raided the West Bank village of Azzoun, which is under joint Israeli and Palestinian control.

We will not respond to these provocations

Ahmed Hazza, Fatah official

Palestinian sources said 18 men were arrested in house-to-house searches.

Israel said it arrested 17 Palestinians "suspected of hostile activity", including members of the Islamic militant group Hamas and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

The BBC's Jeremy Cooke in Jerusalem says the raid is part of a strategy by Israel to exert maximum pressure on the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, to try to force him to carry out his own arrests of militants.

Our correspondent says Israel's clear message to Mr Arafat is that he should be arresting extremists and that if he does not, the Israeli military will carry on taking its own action.

Restrictions eased

As the violence continued, Israeli and Palestinian officials took steps to ease tension on the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip, Associated Press news agency reported.

The two sides agreed to repair the landing strip at Gaza Airport, which was destroyed by Israeli bulldozers in retaliation for a series of suicide bombings in Israel by Palestinian militants, and Israel said it would reopen the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Thursday.

The Israeli defence ministry also announced Palestinians would be able to enter and leave Jericho after a drop in the number of attacks by Palestinian militants.