Israeli forces in the West Bank have shot dead two Hamas militants they say were responsible for the killings of four Israelis last month, according to a senior Palestinian security official.
An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed only that forces were operating in the area around Hebron, long a flashpoint of Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said in a statement that the operation was "a quick response to the murder of the four Israelis".
He said Israel would "continue to act in any place, without compromise and with determination against terror organisations" to maintain calm in the West Bank.
The senior Palestinian security official said Nashat al-Karmi and Mamoun al-Natshi were killed in an early morning raid and had been identified by family members. Hamas media later confirmed the killings.
The official said the two belonged to Islamist Hamas and were behind the killing of four Israelis on the eve of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks that began last month. Hamas, which controls the Israeli-blockaded Gaza Strip, opposes the talks.
The Israelis were shot in their vehicle on a highway near Hebron in the most lethal attack in the West Bank in four years.
Palestinians said medical workers were unable to reach the scene.
Agencies