Palestinian police arrest militant at second attempt

An Islamic militant leader escaped arrest for the second time this month but was caught later by Palestinian security forces.

Islamic Jihad leader Mohammed al-Hindi was captured a few hours after he escaped police waiting to arrest him.

He'd been shielded by dozens of supporters that included armed men firing in the air.

Israel and the US have demanded that the Palestinian Authority crack down on Islamic militant groups that are still attacking Israel.

In the most recent attack, a member of the Islamic Jihad group blew himself up on an Israeli bus on Thursday, killing three passengers and himself.

On Saturday, Palestinian police were waiting outside the home of al-Hindi, an Islamic Jihad leader in the Gaza Strip, in order to arrest him, witnesses say.

When al-Hindi drove up to his house, dozens of neighbours surrounded the vehicle to keep police away.

After a five-minute standoff, armed Islamic Jihad members arrived and fired in the air. Al-Hindi and his bodyguard escaped in the melee, witnesses and Islamic Jihad members say.

Palestinian security officials have said the arrests of Islamic militants are widely unpopular at a time of harsh Israeli military strikes and sweeping travel bans in the Palestinian areas.