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HEBRON - THE Israeli army killed a top Hamas militant in the occupied West Bank on Sunday, Palestinian medical workers and witnesses said.
Israeli soldiers fired a shell at the house of Shihab al-Natsheh, 25, in the city of Hebron after he refused to surrender and opened fire at troops, local residents said.
An Israeli army spokesman said soldiers clashed with a group of gunmen in the city, killing a militant. She declined to give further details.
Hamas's armed wing, the Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigade, vowed to avenge Natsheh's killing. 'Our response will be swift and painful,' the group said in a statement.
Palestinians said the Israeli army blocked all roads leading to Hebron, preventing anybody from leaving or entering the city.
Residents said the Israeli army believed Natsheh was behind a suicide attack that killed an Israeli woman in the southern city of Dimona in February and had been seeking to arrest him for several months. -- REUTERS
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