Israel says the movement of forces is meant to deter

A BBC correspondent in Jerusalem says Israel's troop move is designed to send a clear message that there will be a massive retaliation if the Palestinian Authority does not restrain militant groups such as Islamic Jihad and Hamas.

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, a leading figure in the Middle East peace process, has told Arab League foreign ministers there are no prospects for peace while Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon stays in power.

"Frankly speaking, it is clear that there is no solution with Sharon. He is a man who only understands murder, strikes and war," the Egyptian news agency MENA quoted Mr Mubarak as saying.

Tensions high

Sporadic clashes erupted in the West Bank on Wednesday, and mortars were fired at a kibbutz outside the Gaza Strip and at a Gaza checkpoint, Israel Army Radio reported, but nobody has been hurt.

At the funeral procession in Bethlehem, Israeli flags were burned and rifles fired shots in the air as relatives and masked men followed the coffins, sobbing, chanting anti-Israeli slogans, and calling for revenge.

About 20,000 Palestinians marched in Bethlehem

Israeli spokesmen said that two of the men killed had been targeted for plotting an attack on civilians, and that the troops were being moved as a warning, in response to "flagrant violation" of the tattered ceasefire.

Palestinians say Israel's mobilisation of forces indicates that it is counting down to an attempt to re-occupy parts of the West Bank.

But Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, visiting London, said his country had no intention of recapturing Palestinian-controlled West Bank land.

"Contrary to the reports, we do not intend to re-conquer the territories," he told reporters.

Security measures

Mr Sharon convened his security cabinet on Wednesday, to discuss ways to prevent Palestinians from crossing into Israel in areas near larger West Bank towns that border Israeli territory, such as Tulkarm and Qalqilya.

A spokesman for the prime minister, Raanan. Gissin, said the measures would include additional monitoring and perhaps electronic sensors.

These reinforcements, tanks and military units are pushing the fragile situation to the edge of explosion

Ahmed Abdel-Rahman, Arafat aide

Israeli checkpoints in the West Bank were reinforced on Wednesday and new positions were set up along roads to search passing cars.

Many Palestinians travelling from Bethlehem to Jerusalem bypassed the crowded checkpoint on foot, taking paths skirting the main road.

The mobilisation came after some of the worst violence in the region in recent months, including a suicide bombing and mortar attacks by Palestinians and Israeli helicopter strikes.

Two Israeli soldiers killed in Monday's suicide bombing are laid to rest

Senior Palestinians were quick to warn that Israel's actions were pushing the region towards disaster.

"These reinforcements, tanks and military units are pushing the fragile situation to the edge of explosion," Ahmed Abdel-Rahman, an aide to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, said.

Israel government spokesman Avi Pazner says what happens next depends on Yasser Arafat.

"This is a warning. This is a deterrence measure to try and convince Arafat to get his people to stop this terrorism campaign."