Manhunt after Israeli soldier gunned down

JERUSALEM: Israeli troops on Monday hunted for a suspected Palestinian gunman who shot a soldier dead in Hebron, days after another Palestinian killed a soldier in a separate incident.
The killings have cast a pall over peace talks relaunched last month after a three-year hiatus, with Israeli ministers calling on the government to reconsider its decision to negotiate with the Palestinians.
The United States condemned both attacks, which it said “undermine efforts to establish the positive atmosphere the parties need to progress in peace negotiation.”
The Israeli military on Sunday said a soldier died in hospital after sustaining gunshot wounds in the southern West Bank city of Hebron, later identifying him as 20-year-old Sergeant Gabriel Koby from Tirat Hacarmel in northern Israel.
Israeli police said earlier the soldier had been shot, “probably by terrorists,” although the gunman had fled the scene.
A military spokeswoman told AFP on Monday that most of the roadblocks used to seal off the city the previous night were removed by morning and the army was searching in a “more specific” manner.
She said the army had apprehended two Palestinians for holding hunting rifles, but that they were not connected to Sunday’s incident.
Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the resettlement of the disputed Machpela house, a Hebron structure near the Cave of the Patriarchs from which he had removed 15 Jewish settlers last year.
Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad Al-Malki on Monday accused Israel of unfairly “holding the Palestinian leadership responsible for what happens in the West Bank” in an interview with Voice of Palestine.