About 50 Israeli armoured vehicles raided a Palestinian refugee camp today, one day after Prime Minister Ariel Sharon raised hopes for an end to 32 months of violence by accepting a US-backed peace "road map".
Witnesses said the force pushed into Tulkarm refugee camp in the West Bank, where soldiers searched house-to-house for suspected militants. The army said it intended to dismantle the camp's "terrorist infrastructure". Israel has repeatedly raided the camp over the past two years.
There were no immediate reports of clashes or casualties in the operation that began at dawn and followed suicide bombings in Israel that killed 10 people over the past week.
After weeks of hesitation, Mr Sharon's office announced last night his acceptance of the road map after Washington said it would address Israel's reservations about the plan as it was being implemented.
The announcement said Mr Sharon would seek his cabinet's approval of the proposal, opening the way for a possible Middle East summit with US President George W. Bush and Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas. The cabinet next meets tomorrow.
The Palestinian back the plan, drafted by the United States, European Union, United Nations and Russia and setting out reciprocal steps leading to the establishment of an independent Palestinian state by 2005.
Israel has been reluctant to do so until the Palestinians rein in militant groups behind suicide bombings.
Political sources said Mr Sharon was likely to win cabinet approval for the plan, despite the hostility of far-right ministers who oppose its call for Palestinian statehood or the freezing of Jewish settlement-building on occupied land.
Mr Bush said soon after Israel's announcement that he would consider calling a summit with Mr Sharon and Mr Abbas.
He did not say where or when they might meet but US officials said the talks could take place in early June in Geneva or at the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.
Israel has expressed 10 to 15 reservations about the plan, including about a "right of return" of Palestinian refugees to to their homes in what is now the Jewish state.
Mr Sharon had sought a public US commitment to address those concerns. US Secretary of State Colin Powell and national security adviser Condoleezza Rice made that commitment, saying the reservations would be addressed as the plan is implemented.
But Mr Powell ruled out amending the road map, hoping to satisfy the Palestinians. They welcomed Mr Sharon's announcement but cautioned that the plan must not be changed.