Israel delays West Bank pullout after bomb attack

Israel has delayed withdrawing from some Palestinian towns following a bomb attack on a Jewish settlement.

While the country has pulled out of Qalqilya, soldiers remain in parts of Jenin, Ramallah and Tulkarem.

Israel say that its advance into the West Bank has achieved its goal of halting terror attacks and rooting out suspects.

Raanan Gissin, a senior aide to prime minister Ariel Sharon, said a pullout from Jenin, at the northern edge of the West Bank, was delayed after a bomb exploded in a Jewish settlement nearby.

Three Israelis were injured, one seriously, when the bomb went off in the makeshift cafeteria at a factory in the Shaked settlement.

The Islamic Jihad has admitted responsibility.

Raanan Gissin says Israeli forces may pull out of Ramallah next, in the West Bank centre of Yasser Arafat's Palestinian Authority.