Palestinians attack Israeli army post

Israeli troops have shot and killed two Palestinians who attacked an army post with grenades, and militant Islamic groups said they would ignore any truce deal, complicating US efforts to arrange a ceasefire.

Amid the ongoing turbulence, US envoy Anthony Zinni planned to mediate another round of ceasefire talks today.

Mr Zinni has been meeting with both sides for the past 10 days on a US truce plan that both Israelis and Palestinians have endorsed in principle.

Despite optimistic forecasts, the Israelis and Palestinians disagree on the timetable for implementing the truce plan, with each insisting the other take the first key steps.

In the northern Gaza Strip, the two Palestinians tossed grenades yesterday as they tried to storm a military outpost, but they were shot and killed by Israeli troops, the army said. The attack took place near the Jewish settlement of Dugit.

In the nearby Jebalya refugee camp, mosque loudspeakers said the two men belonged to the militant group Hamas, and were ‘‘killed in an honourable fight with the enemy’’.

A third Palestinian, school teacher Subhu Abu Manus, was killed by shrapnel from an Israeli tank shell in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. But the Israeli army said it did not fire any tank shells in the area.

Also in Gaza, a four-year-old Palestinian girl died, two days after being shot in the head, hospital officials said. Her family said she was playing outside her home in Rafah refugee camp when Israeli troops stationed along the Israeli-Egyptian border fired on the camp. The army said it was not aware of the incident.

Meanwhile, Islamic Jihad and Hamas, the two militant Islamic groups that have carried out most of the suicide attacks, said they would not abide by any ceasefire agreement.

Islamic Jihad spiritual leader Sheik Abdullah Shami called on the Palestinian Authority to ‘‘stay in the trenches of resistance because there is no way to end the occupation other than struggle’’.

Hamas spokesman Ismail Abu Shanab said Israel could not be trusted to observe a ceasefire. ‘‘They didn’t respect any ceasefire declarations (previously), we are not going to repeat that with them,’’ Abu Shanab said.

Last night, President George W. Bush said Mr Arafat had not done enough to fight terrorism.

‘‘There’s been no question that the United States has stood strong with Israel and we’ve made it clear to Mr Arafat that he is not doing all he can do to fight off terror,’’ he said at a news conference in Lima, Peru, part of a four-day Latin American tour.

Today’s meeting between the two sides could determine whether US Vice President Dick Cheney goes to Egypt this week for talks with Mr Arafat. The meeting may also help Mr Zinni decide whether the Palestinian leader has accepted US conditions for a ceasefire and will work to implement them.

‘‘If and when Chairman Arafat performs, that’s what we have said,’’ Mr Bush said.

In another development, Israeli foreign minister Shimon Peres said Mr Arafat should be allowed to leave the Palestinian territories and attend an Arab summit that begins this week in Beirut, Lebanon.

Arafat has not left the West Bank town of Ramallah for nearly four months because of restrictions Israel placed on his travel, and he badly wants to attend the summit.

But Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has not said whether Mr Arafat will be allowed to go.