Israeli troops shot dead two Palestinian policemen in a West Bank gun battle and Jewish settlers killed a Palestinian near Jerusalem.
Palestinian security sources said the policemen, aged 30 and 37, had been manning their outpost in Tulkarm. Some of the sources said the men had been shot repeatedly and beaten and their guns were missing.
They said the gun battle, lasting through the night, took place in an Israeli-controlled area at the city's outskirts in the northern West Bank.
Mr Yasser Arafat's Fatah party, marking its 36th anniversary on New Year's Day, had called for attacks on Israeli soldiers and settlers.
In a separate incident last night, witnesses said armed Jewish settlers drove in two cars into Hizma village near Jerusalem and shot a Palestinian in the head. He died later in hospital.
Reuters
