In fresh violence, Israeli troops killed three Palestinians, raising the Palestinian death toll from army operations to at least 28 since Islamic militants blew up an Israeli tank on Saturday, killing its four crewmen.

The flare-up threatened new efforts to arrange a cease-fire in a Palestinian uprising that began in September 2000 after the collapse of talks on a Palestinian state in the territories Israel occupied in the 1967 Middle East war.

In London, international mediators said their "roadmap" to peace in the Middle East should be put to Israel and the Palestinians as soon as possible. An Israeli newspaper said the government wanted to make more than 100 changes to the plan.

The Israeli army said it was limiting Palestinian travel in the Gaza Strip as part of "the continuing fight against terror and in response to yesterday's Qassam rocket attack."

Crude Qassam rockets launched Wednesday from the Gaza Strip hit the southern town of Sderot, near Sharon's desert ranch, wounding three people, one seriously.

Militants fired two more makeshift rockets into the area from Gaza Thursday, but they landed in open fields and there were no casualties or damage, Israeli security sources said.

Army roadblocks in Gaza split the strip into three sectors. Hundreds of Palestinians cut off from their homes or work in Gaza City reached their destinations by walking along a beach, buffeted by waves from a storm.

Palestinians say Israeli travel restrictions are collective punishment. The curbs were imposed after Wednesday's army raids that killed 11 Palestinians, including two gunmen and four security officers.

Pattern of Revenge

The rocket barrage followed a vow of revenge by the militant organization Hamas, which has carried out many suicide bombings against Israeli targets over the past decade.

"This combat has a fixed pattern," commentator Roni Shaked said in the Israeli daily Yedioth Ahronoth.

"An act of terror, followed by an Israeli reaction, followed by revenge for the reaction, followed by revenge for the revenge, ad infinitum. This situation will continue as long as the diplomatic vacuum continues."

The Israeli army said Thursday it shot dead an armed Palestinian during a gunbattle in the West Bank city of Tulkarm. The armed wing of the Hamas said the dead man was a member.

In the West Bank city of Nablus, a 17-year-old youth and his 65-year-old grandfather were shot dead when troops opened fire to disperse stone throwers, Palestinian security officials and medics said. They said the two were walking through the neighborhood and not involved in the stone throwing.

Israeli military sources said troops fired on and hit youths who were throwing Molotov cocktails at them.

The State Department expressed concern at the violence, saying it has urged Israel to avoid the killing of innocent civilians, but expressing its understanding of "the need for Israel to take legitimate anti-terrorist actions."

Roadmap

Palestinian officials said the Israeli incursions would damage attempts to revive peacemaking, including talks in London on Palestinian reforms demanded by the mediators' quartet -- the United States, United Nations, European Union and Russia.

A quartet statement in London said the roadmap should be unveiled as soon as possible -- but set no date for publication, which was delayed by Israel's recent general election and the reservations of both sides toward leaked versions of the plan.

Sharon Thursday reiterated his position that he would never agree to key Palestinian demands to have east Jerusalem as the capital of a future state or allow Palestinian refugees displaced in wars since 1948 the right of return to Israel.

"There will be no compromise when it comes to Jerusalem," the right-wing former general told visiting U.S. Jewish leaders. "The right of return of Palestinians? Israel will never accept that danger to occur, never."

Sharon has said Palestinian violence must stop before negotiations can resume on a permanent Palestinian state. Palestinian officials say violence is unlikely to subside until the Israeli army pulls back from cities under self-rule.

At least 1,857 Palestinians and 705 Israelis have been killed since the uprising began.

(China Daily February 21, 2003)