Palestinian leader Mr Yasser Arafat today denounced Israel's new blockade of his Ramallah headquarters, which one senior aide said was aimed at putting pressure on US peace moves.
"Through this action, the Israeli government has revealed to the world its real intentions as well as its expansionist goals and has ridiculed our calls for peace and our repeated calls for an end to military operations against Israeli and Palestinian civilians," Mr Arafat said.
Israeli tanks and armoured personnel carriers rolled into the West Bank city of Ramallah early this morning. Witnesses said an explosion could be heard as at least one column of some 20 armoured vehicles moved through the city.
The Israeli army declined to comment on the reports. The army last entered Ramallah on June 10th, staying for almost three days and rounding up some 75 suspected militants.
This afternoon, Israeli forces arrested 22 Palestinians, almost all policemen, at a police station in Ramallah.
Israeli military sources said they had discovered "three guns, explosive devices and ammunition" in a makeshift police station and "taken 13 policemen for investigation."
Meanwhile, 20 Palestinians were also arrested in the Al-Amari refugee camp, at the northern entrance of Ramallah. The Israeli army could not immediately confirm their arrest.
Israeli troops now control most Palestinian population centres in the West Bank, including Nablus, Jenin, Tulkarem and Bethlehem, placing residents under curfew.
Israeli troops opened fire at suspect garbage on a main street in the Dheisheh refugee camp south of the West Bank town of Bethlehem today, wounding three children, Palestinian sources said.
The boys aged seven, nine and 10 were playing outside their home when Israeli troops opened fire with live ammunition on pieces of garbage, wounding the children in the shooting, witnesses said.
Earlier Israeli helicopters fired missiles at two cars carrying suspected Palestinian militants in Rafah, southern Gaza, killing at least six people, Palestinian security sources and Israeli radio stations said.
Israel Radio said the attack was the latest strike under an Israeli policy to deliberately target and kill Palestinian militants behind suicide bombings and shooting attacks.