Hamas leader killed in West Bank

A senior Hamas leader in the West Bank has died in an Israeli shell attack on the offices of the Palestinian militant group in the town of Nablus.

Jamal Mansour was among eight people - including two young boys - who died in the attack.

It took place with such lightning speed that Palestinians in the area said they do not know whether the Israeli forces fired from an aircraft or from land.

This latest attack follows the killing of six Palestinian activists in another attack which has been blamed on Israel.

The six died when their roadside shack exploded: the Palestinians said Israel targeted the building, while Israel said they died when a bomb they were preparing exploded prematurely.

The Israeli military refused to comment on today's attack.

Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, Hamas' spiritual leader, said: "Israel has violated all the red lines. The Israeli people should know that they will pay the price and our blood is not cheap.

In other violence today, two Palestinians died in clashes with Israeli troops near a crossing point between the Gaza Strip and Israel.

One has been named as Hamouda Madhoun, a member of the Islamic Jihad movement. Two Jewish settlements in Gaza, Netzarim and Rafiah Yam, also came under mortar fire from Palestinian areas today. No one was hurt in the attacks.