Israel steps up West Bank raids

Israel says the raids pre-empt further Palestinian violence

Israel has arrested some 30 Palestinian militants in a series of raids on the eve of talks in Egypt aimed at securing a new truce from Palestinian groups.

Seventeen members of Islamic Jihad were arrested in Jenin, and other militants were held after raids in Ramallah, Israeli army sources said.

The news comes amid a row between the US and Israel over the unofficial Geneva peace plan for the Middle East.

Palestinian officials said the raids could prompt a new cycle of violence.

Israel defended the renewed military operations, saying they had pre-empted a fresh wave of suicide attacks.

Three Hamas militants and a Palestinian boy of six were killed by Israeli forces in Ramallah on Monday, hours before the alternative peace deal took the international stage in Geneva.

On Tuesday, the plan was overshadowed by more violence, as Israeli troops shot dead two Palestinians in the West Bank.

'New settlements'

The Israeli Government is reported to have approved the construction of more than 1,720 new houses in Jewish settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip this year.

The Geneva plan deals head-on with contentious issues

The Washington Post newspaper quoted critics of the expansion, who said it had undercut a freeze on settlement building set out in the roadmap peace plan.

Meanwhile, Palestinian militant groups - including Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement - are in Cairo for talks aimed at securing a new Palestinian ceasefire offer.

The official opening of the talks has been delayed until Thursday, when Hamas and Islamic Jihad plan to join the meeting.

Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei hopes to present a truce offer to Israel - a key step in reviving the US-backed roadmap.

HAVE YOUR SAY Finally - a workable plan for both sides Dan M, UK Send us your comments

But, with the roadmap apparently derailed, the emergence of the Geneva plan has sparked a rare public dispute between Israel and the US.

US rebuked

US Secretary of State Colin Powell has said he intends to meet the authors of the unofficial peace plan, despite opposition from Israel.

GENEVA ACCORD: MAIN POINTS Israeli withdrawal from almost all West Bank and Gaza Shared sovereignty over Jerusalem Palestinian renunciation of 'right of return' The Geneva accord explained

He was responding to a rebuke by Israel's deputy prime minister, who said such a move would be a "mistake".

The new plan, launched by Israeli and Palestinian political figures, calls for the establishment of a Palestinian state, and the dismantling of most Jewish settlements.

It grants Israel the right to decide how many Palestinian refugees can return to Israel.

The US State Department said Mr Powell was expected to meet the accord's chief authors - former Israeli Justice Minister Yossi Beilin and former Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo - in Washington on Friday.