An Israeli sniper killed a Palestinian security officer sheltering at Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity today, and a new round of talks began on ending the month-old confrontation at the holy site.
Bethlehem mayor Mr Hanna Nasser said US officials were involved in the negotiations and he expected the long-drawn-out standoff to end in the next few hours. Israeli negotiators could not be reached for comment.
The shooting followed a fresh raid on a West Bank town by Israeli troops searching for Palestinian militants, and occurred as both sides considered a US proposal for a broad international conference on Middle East peacemaking.
The last round of negotiations to end Israel's siege of the Bethlehem church, revered as the site where Jesus was born, foundered on Orthodox Christian Good Friday over a dispute about delivering food to civilians holed up inside with Palestinian gunmen.
Today, a Palestinian man inside the church compound was hit by a lone gunshot and later died in an Israeli hospital, sources in the church and in the Israeli military said.
Palestinians identified the man as a member of the Palestinian Force 17 presidential guard. The Israeli military source said he was a wanted militant behind attacks on Israelis in the 19-month-old Palestinian uprising against occupation.
US Secretary of State Mr Colin Powell's announcement of plans for a Middle East conference drew a wary reply from Israel but was welcomed by Palestinian President Mr Yasser Arafat, who Israeli Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon rejects as a peace partner.
Both sides weighed the prospect of returning to the peace table under a wide international umbrella proposed by Mr Powell.
But the White House, where anti-Arafat conservatives have feuded with State Department moderates over Middle East policy, signalled not too much should be expected from the forum, saying it would not be empowered to propose a final peace deal.
"It's just a series of ongoing discussions to help solidify visions that have been expressed not only by the United States and the Europeans, but more importantly, the visions expressed by Israel and Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia," US President George W. Bush told reporters at Camp David.
Elsewhere in the West Bank, Israeli troops and tanks entered Tulkarm before dawn and searched several houses before pulling out, witnesses said. No arrests or fighting were reported.
Such raids have become common since Israel wound down its large-scale offensive against Palestinian towns in the West Bank, aimed at rooting out suicide bombers.
In the Gaza Strip, soldiers shot dead a Palestinian security officer during what Palestinian witnesses said was an incursion north of the Khan Younis refugee camp.
The army denied any incursion, but said soldiers shot dead an armed Palestinian who opened fire at them at a checkpoint near a Jewish settlement.
Mr Powell appeared to catch both sides off guard when he said Washington was preparing for a conference this summer to take advantage of a window of opportunity opened by the end of Mr Arafat's month-long confinement by Israel.
The Palestinian leader had been surrounded by Israeli troops in his offices in Ramallah since the army stormed the West Bank on March 29th.
"It is an idea that we welcome. But it has not been agreed upon and we have not been officially notified," said Mr Arafat.
No venue or date has been set for the conference, although Israeli media reported it may take place in Turkey this summer.
"Israel is certainly interested in the resumption of the peace process...the big question still is are the Palestinians ready to put an end to the strategy of terror against the state of Israel?" Israeli Foreign Ministry official Mr Arieh Mekel said.
Mr Mekel said Mr Sharon would seek more details on Mr Powell's plan when he meets Bush at the White House on Tuesday.