A PALESTINIAN militant with ties to Hamas was killed in a car bomb yesterday, unleashing factional unrest that left three others dead and more than 20 wounded - in the first direct threat to the Islamic group’s new government.

A Palestinian militant group, the Popular Resistance Committees, today claimed responsibility for killing a former Gaza security chief in his home.

Israel welcomed a temporary truce declared by Palestinian militants and promised today to hold its fire, but demanded that the Palestinian Authority eventually dismantle the armed groups.