Unidentified armed men have ambushed one of the top commanders of the Palestinian security forces in the Gaza Strip, wounding him and killing a bodyguard, Aljazeera correspondent reports. Brigadier-General Tariq Abu Rajab, deputy head of the Palestinian General Intelligence Service, was shot in the chest on Wednesday as he drove to his office in Gaza City, our correspondent said quoting Palestinian security sources. Medics said he was undergoing surgery. Palestinian hospital officials also said Abu Rajab was in stable condition and his injuries were not life-threatening. Rajab was traveling in a two-vehicle convoy when shots rang out, witnesses said. One of the vehicles flipped over. The attack happened near the Shatti refugee camp on the western side of the city. Three other bodyguards were also wounded in the attack, two of whom were said to be in a serious condition, the sources added. **Helm*** Rajab has been at the helm of the intelligence services since the previous incumbent Amin al-Hindi resigned in July after a series of kidnappings in the Israeli-occupied territory. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the shooting. Rajab, who keeps a low public profile, is an old ally of Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat. Most recently, he had been in charge of security for Palestinian diplomatic missions abroad, officials said. The Gaza Strip has seen a wave of internal violence in recent months, as various groups vie for power before a planned Israeli pullout next year. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Israeli soldiers arrest a Palestinian boy after he threw stones in the West Bank town of Bethlehem, August 24, 2004. (Reuters)