Palestinian Teen Killed, Two Israelis Wounded in Gaza, West Bank Violence

JERUSALEM – Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian teenager while leveling land in Gaza on Wednesday, and Palestinian gunmen wounded an Israeli father and his 10-year-old son in a West Bank shooting.

The violence erupted hours after Israel lifted closures and curfews it placed on Palestinian towns and cities in the West Bank to prevent attacks during Tuesday's general election.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon led his Likud party to a resounding victory, crushing liberal parties. But lacking a clear majority in the 120-seat parliament, Sharon now faces the daunting task of forming a stable coalition.

In the Gaza Strip, Israeli soldiers clearing agricultural land near the Jabaliya refugee camp shot and killed a 19-year-old who was walking home, Palestinian security officials said. The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

In a separate incident in Gaza, 15 Palestinians and an Israeli soldier were wounded in gun battles along the Egyptian border, Israeli and Palestinian officials said.

The Gaza Strip has been the focus of violence in the past few days, with Israeli forces launching large-scale assaults on neighborhoods they claim militants use to build and fire rockets at Israeli towns. Twelve Palestinian gunmen were killed in a raid in Gaza City early Sunday.

In the West Bank, Palestinian gunmen opened fire from an overpass at a car near the Jewish settlement of Ofra, Israeli army and police officials said. A father and his son were wounded, and the boy was in serious condition, Israeli hospital officials said.

Palestinian militants often attack Jewish settlers and soldiers in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, viewing them as legitimate targets in their struggle for an independent state. Palestinians claim the West Bank and Gaza, lands Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war, for a future state.

In Hebron, Israeli soldiers blew up a car bomb they found in the Palestinian-controlled area of the divided West Bank city, Palestinian security officials and a Jewish settler spokesman said.