There has been more tit for tat in the Middle East coinciding with the arrival of the US envoy, Anthony Zinni. Mr Zinni has arrived in the region at the start of a new diplomatic effort to broker a ceasefire. He is due to meet Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, on Saturday.
Four Palestinians were killed this afternoon when their car exploded in the West Bank. A Palestinian militant and a member of the security services were killed in other incidents. Three Israeli soldiers were killed when their tank was blown up.
Earlier, the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, ordered the army to carry out what is described as a phased withdrawal from the West Bank city of Ramallah. The city has been under effective military occupation since Monday. Israel says that its offensive in the two territories is aimed at Palestinian militants who killed scores of Israelis in recent weeks.
The White House said that Israel's military offensive was hindering its attempts to mediate. Palestinian Authority officials earlier ruled out ceasefire talks until Israel withdraws its forces from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.
