Palestinian militants killed two off-duty Israeli soldiers who were hiking today near the West Bank city of Hebron, in a clash that left two of the gunmen dead, Israeli and Palestinian security sources said.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said Palestinian gunmen opened fire at the soldiers who live in a nearby Jewish settlement and were on leave at the time of the incident. The Israelis shot back at the gunmen, the spokeswoman said.
Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the shooting. Israel has recently killed several of the group's militants in the Gaza Strip, including some senior commanders.
The group had threatened to retaliate for the Gaza attacks, saying the Israeli actions would "not go unpunished".
An Israeli police spokesman called today's shooting a "terrorist attack" and said police and the army had searched the area for the attackers.
Hours earlier, Israeli troops near the West Bank city of Ramallah killed a Palestinian security guard who worked for President Mahmoud Abbas's chief negotiator with Israel, the army and Palestinian security sources said.
Israel's Magen David Adom ambulance service confirmed that two Israelis had been killed near Hebron.
Palestinian witnesses said Israeli police blocked off the main entrances into Hebron after the shooting.
Israel has called on Mr Abbas to meet his obligations under a 2003 "road map" peace plan to rein in militants in the West Bank and the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip.
The Palestinians say they are meeting their obligations by launching a security clampdown in the West Bank.
Meanwhile Mr Olmert has ordered the Housing Ministry not to unilaterally issue any additional building permits on occupied land in the West Bank, Israeli officials said today.
Mr Olmert was caught off guard by a series of Housing Ministry announcements on settlements that have opened a rift in month-old peace talks with the Palestinians, the officials said on condition of anonymity.
While the order means all new tenders for construction will have to go through Mr Olmert's office, it is unclear to what extent the prime minister intends to curb building within existing settlements.
Mr Olmert, in a meeting yesterday with Mr Abbas, balked at promising to stop construction that is already authorised or under way in settlements in the Jerusalem area, Israeli officials said. The prime minister's office and the Housing Ministry had no immediate comment.
US-backed peace talks, launched at a conference in Annapolis, Maryland last month, have bogged down since Israel announced plans to build hundreds of new homes in an area near Jerusalem known to Israelis as Har Homa and to Palestinians as Jabal Abu Ghneim.