Two Palestinians have been killed during clashes with Israeli occupation forces in Balata refugee camp, near the West Bank city of Nablus, Aljazeera reports.
The clashes erupted during an Israeli raid into the refugee camp on Friday, Aljazeera's correspondent Hasan al-Titi said.
The two Palestinians killed are Alaa al-Tirawi and Jamal al-Jirny, activists of Fatah's al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades. A third activist of the group, Muhammad Qitawi,i was shot in the chest by Israeli fire, al-Titi said.
The resistance group, originally an offshoot of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah ruling party, announced the deaths over loudspeakers before dawn on Friday in Balata refugee camp.
On Thursday, Israeli troops shot dead three Palestinians in raids in the occupied West Bank, widening a week-long offensive despite a halt to home-made rocket salvoes from Gaza that had resumed after Israel's withdrawal.
Israel has also arrested hundreds of suspected resistance members in sweeps into Palestinian villages and towns in the West Bank, where large illegal Jewish settlements remain.
The wave of violence since last Friday has badly frayed a seven-month-old ceasefire and deflated dreams in Gaza of a swift economic upswing in the battered, densely populated coastal territory after the Israeli withdrawal.
It has also chastened hopes that Israel's departure from Gaza – center piece of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan for "disengaging" from conflict with Palestinians - would provide momentum towards renewing peace talks frozen since 2000.
Fatah ahead in West Bank Vote
President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party has fared well in Palestinian local elections but Hamas has also scored significant gains.
Of the 104 local councils up for grabs in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, Fatah won control of 61 compared with 28 for Hamas and 15 for other factions.
According to Jamal al-Shobaki, head of the Higher Commission for Local Elections, the results were in line with opinion polls that gave Hamas about 30% support - pointing to big gains when it takes part in January parliamentary elections.
Thousands voted in the election, seen as a test of Hamas's political clout ahead of the legislative poll. Hamas boycotted the only previous parliamentary ballot in 1996 to protest against government policy toward Israel.
Thursday's ballot, the third phase of local elections for more than 1000 council seats in the West Bank, was also the first Palestinian vote since Israel completed its withdrawal from the Gaza Strip on 12 September after 38 years of occupation.
Al-Shobaki put turnout at 81%. Final official results were due to be announced in a few days.
PHOTO CAPTION
Israeli soldiers detain two Palestinian youths in the West Bank city of Nablus, Sunday Sept. 25, 2005. (AP)