Four die in Israeli-Palestinian violence

Palestinian gunmen today killed two Israeli soldiers in an attack on an army post in the West Bank, while an Israeli helicopter firing machine guns killed two Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The two West Bank assailants were shot dead by security forces.

The violence came as Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was building a coalition after his Likud Party won last week’s election.

The government taking shape is likely to feature hawkish parties demanding even harsher measures against the Palestinians.

The Israeli soldiers were killed when two Palestinian gunmen tried to infiltrate an army post on Mt Gerizim, near the West Bank city of Nablus, the army said. Two soldiers were injured in the attack.

The attackers were shot and killed. The Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, a militia linked to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat’s Fatah movement, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, a radical PLO faction, claimed responsibility for what they said was a joint attack.

On the eastern edge of Gaza City, an Israeli helicopter fired a machine gun, killing two Palestinians, Palestinians said.

Militants often set up rockets there to fire at a nearby village in Israel, Nahal Oz.

Doctors said the two men, in their 20s, were working at a nearby home for the aged.

Israeli military sources said that during an operation in Gaza, helicopters fired at open spaces to deter attackers, and they were not aware of anyone being hit.

Israeli President Moshe Katsav, meanwhile, wound up consultations with party leaders and was preparing to ask Mr Sharon to form a new government.

The process was just a formality, after Mr Sharon’s Likud and its hawkish allies won a clear majority in the parliament.