Israeli soldiers killed a Palestinian militant yesterday in the West Bank during an exchange of fire that ensued after they tried to arrest him, the army and Palestinian witnesses said.

Soldiers arrived at the house of the gunman, a member of al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, in the village of Beir Sahur, near Bethlehem and called for him to surrender. A gunbattle broke out between them and troops shot him dead, witnesses said.

An army spokeswoman said the soldiers arrived at the building with the intention of arresting the militant and fired at him inside the house after spotting him toting a rifle. Palestinian medics later confirmed his death.

A suicide bomber from al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed group within Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas?s Fatah faction, killed four Israelis in the West Bank last week in the first such attack in months.

It was unclear whether the militant killed yesterday was suspected to have been involved the bombing.