Truce talks stalemate after suicide attack

A round of Mideast truce talks ended without a deal tonight, only hours after a Palestinian suicide bomber detonated his deadly package at an Israeli military checkpoint in the West Bank, killing himself and wounding an officer.

It was the third suicide bombing in three days.

The Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, a militia linked to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, claimed responsibility as they did yesterday’s suicide bombing in the heart of Jerusalem.

The Israeli military said the bomber had intended to blow himself up in Israel, but detonated the explosives prematurely when he was unexpectedly stopped by soldiers at a surprise checkpoint and was asked to lift his shirt during a search.

The assailant had been riding in a van with two other men, who fled after the explosion, said Brigadier General Gershon Yitzhak, commander of forces in the West Bank.

Suicide bombings on Wednesday and Thursday were carried out by the militant Islamic Jihad and by the Al Aqsa militia, respectively. In all, 10 Israelis were killed and dozens wounded in those attacks.

Despite the violence, another round of truce talks lasted more than three hours today.

Yarden Vatikay, an adviser to Israeli Defence Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, said no agreement was reached on a timetable for implementing a ceasefire plan Each side wants the other to take the first steps toward a truce.