Palestinian mediators pressed for a negotiated solution to a weeklong siege of a refugee camp in Lebanon, with the Lebanese government demanding the surrender of Islamic militants inside.

A senior official of a radical Palestinian faction today warned that if the Lebanese army launches an assault to wipe out an Islamic militant group barricaded in a Palestinian refugee camp, it would trigger violence in other camps.

SECURITY officials said a car bomb on Friday killed a leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad — an Iran-backed militant group that persisted in attacking Israel while other major factions adhered to a cease-fire.

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader in southern Lebanon died today from wounds from a car bombing that also killed his brother, security officials said.

The two main militant groups fighting for Palestinian independence from Israel have rejected Yasser Arafat’s call for an end to the 15-month-old Intefadeh (uprising).