Israeli soldiers killed three Palestinian militants during early morning raids on the West Bank today, Palestinian sources said.The soldiers entered the towns of Jenin and neighbouring Burqin to arrest suspected West Bank militants. In Jenin, a militant fired at Israeli soldiers, who fired back and killed him. Palestinian sources identified the militant as 30-year-old Samer Asady, a member of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.
The other two militants killed by Israeli troops were shot in Buqin. The Israeli army said the men had appeared to be about to fire on the soldiers, who later found assault rifles and ammunition clips on their bodies. Palestinians identified the men as Islamic Jihad militants Nidal Khlouf, 32, and 24-year-old Samer Shalaby.
Zakariya Zubeydi, the leader of al-Aqsa in Jenin, said his group would no longer stick to the informal truce with Israel which has largely been upheld since February. "The Israelis have not upheld their part of the ceasefire agreement," he said. "We will fight back hard, and there will be no limits to our responses from now on. We need to protect our people."
Israel launched the crackdown on militants last weekend in response to a series of rocket attacks launched by Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip into southern Israeli towns. The operation has continued with a series of air strikes and arrest raids, despite pledges by Hamas and other groups to stop the rocket fire.