Israeli troops scouring a West Bank militant stronghold have killed a Palestinian teenager and wounded three others in clashes with stonethrowers.
They said a 17-year-old was fatally shot in the chest while confronting troops on Saturday who have stepped up searches in Nablus since a suicide bomber from an outlying village killed four Israelis at a bus stop near Tel Aviv on Thursday.
The militant Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, one of several groups waging a three-year-old uprising, claimed responsibility for that bombing, calling it revenge for the Israeli army's killing of four gunmen in a Nablus sweep last week.
The army, which has effectively bisected the bustling valley city during the 10-day operation, did not immediately comment on Saturday's casualties. The three Palestinians wounded were hit in the legs by bullets, medics said.
A government spokesman said the Nablus sweep was made in response to intelligence alerts of imminent militant attacks.
"These are routine anti-terrorist operations," said Avi Pazner of the Prime Minister's Office. "Israel will not allow Nablus to become the springboard of Palestinian terrorism against Israel."