Senior Hamas man killed in blast near Nablus

A senior Hamas fugitive was killed in a mysterious explosion in the West Bank on Wednesday, and the Islamic militant group accused Israel Defense Forces troops of setting off the blast.


Meanwhile in the Gaza Strip, Palestinains said that a one-and-a-half year old baby boy was seriously wounded by IDF gunfire in the refugee camp of Khan Yunis. The West Bank blast went off at about 8:30 A.M. in an apartment in the village of Zawata near the Palestinian city of Nablus. The fugitive, Amin Fadel, 28, was killed. Fadel had rented the apartment four days earlier. He had been wanted by Israel for two years on suspicion of involvement in attacks on Israelis. A source from Hamas, which has led a campaign of suicide bombings inside Israel during a 31-month-old Palestinian uprising for statehood, said soldiers opened fire at the building in which Fadel was hiding. An IDF source, however, said that the army had no connection to the blast in the apartment. Palestinian sources said the explosion that killed Fadel was likely the result of a „work accident,” Israel Radio reported. The mayor of Zawata said Israeli troops had imposed a curfew on the village several hours before the explosion. Local firefighters said the blast went off inside the house, ruling out a missile strike. Israel has killed scores of suspected militants in targeted attacks in the past 31 months of fighting. However, a number of militiamen also died while handling explosives that went off prematurely.