As Prime Minister Ariel Sharon held his first direct talks with Palestinian leaders since taking office, the Israeli army arrested a member of the Islamic radical Hamas group in the northern West Bank.
The militant, caught in the village of Qabalan near Nablus, was wanted "on suspicion of hostile terrorist activity," an official statement said.
The army provided no further details nor the name of the suspect.
Three other Palestinian activists were arrested by Israeli security in the West Bank yesterday and today, the statement said without mentioning the charges against them.
Mr Sharon's talks, which took place on Wednesday but were first reported by Israel Radio last night, opened a channel of dialogue while Palestinian leader Mr Yasser Arafat remains confined to his West Bank base by an Israeli military cordon.
Israeli political sources said the prime minister's meeting with three senior Palestinian officials was held in a friendly atmosphere and that Mr Arafat had approved the discussions, which were arranged at Mr Sharon's initiative.
Among Palestinian demands was an end to restrictions on Mr Arafat's movements, the Israeli sources added, saying Mr Sharon would meet the same men in an effort to cement a ceasefire after his talks this week in Washington with US President George W. Bush.
US and Israeli officials in New York said Israeli and Palestinian security officials had also met in Jerusalem yesterday, renewing contacts interrupted last month by a series of suicide attacks by Palestinian militants.
Hours after the security meeting, Israeli helicopters fired four missiles at the central Gaza headquarters of the Palestinian naval police in the village of Dir al-Balach.
There were no reports of casualties in the assault, which the army said was retaliation for a Palestinian mortar attack and a separate assault on a position near Gaza's Jewish settlement of Kfar Darom yesterday that wounded a soldier.
AFP and