Israel's siege and destruction of Yasser Arafat's headquarters in Ramallah is causing mounting protests, from both the international community and the Palestinian population.

The White House said Israel's action was "not helpful" in ending Palestinian suicide bombings.

Israeli actions in and around the Muqata'a [Arafat compound] are not helpful in reducing terrorist violence or promoting Palestinian reforms

Jeanie Mamo, White House spokeswoman

Palestinians have poured out into the streets, many in defiance of military curfew, in support of their leader, while the European Union, France, Russia and Arab countries have urged an end to the siege.

The army has kept up pressure on Mr Arafat by intermittently cutting water and power supplies, after tearing down the last remaining building next to his office overnight.

Mr Arafat is refusing to give in to the Israeli Government's demands that he surrender 50 suspected militants Israel says are hiding in his offices.

	Arafat's Ramallah compound Known as the Muqata'a Built by the British in the 1920s Palestinians took control in 1994 year after Oslo peace accords Largely destroyed by Israeli forces Click here for more on Yasser Arafat's compound

Popular protests began in the early hours when the army announced on loudspeakers at the compound that troops were about to blow up Mr Arafat's office unless the wanted men surrendered.

Israel says it does not intend to harm Mr Arafat, and the army later made it clear there were no plans to blow up the building.

Just a few kilometres from Mr Arafat's compound, troops fired tear gas and live rounds to disperse a chanting crowd breaking a curfew. One protester and a journalist were killed, medical sources said.

Two other people were killed in Tulkarm and the Balata refugee camp next to Nablus.

Later on Sunday, a teenager was shot dead in Nablus.

There have also been large demonstrations in Gaza, which is still under Palestinian control, and in Jericho, where several hundred people marched on a prison holding six men jailed as part of a deal in May to lift the last siege of Mr Arafat's compound.

Demonstrators took to the streets in several towns

The foreign monitors at the prison threatened to leave, saying they felt endangered by the mob, who were calling for the men's release.

Reports in Israel say the assault on Ramallah is meant to force Mr Arafat to choose exile rather than suffer the relentless pressure put on him by the army.

Deputy Defence Minister Weizman Shiri said that Mr Arafat could leave the country, but would not be allowed to return.

"If he decides he wants to get out we'll give him a lift," Mr Shiri told army radio on Sunday.

Inside the compound, the Palestinian leader is reported to have told his entourage that he wanted God to "grant him the honour of martyrdom" and no one would be handed over to Israel.

Israel initially said there were 19 wanted men in the compound, including members of the intelligence service and Mr Arafat's personal bodyguard, but a senior army officer said the figure increased because the army had not had a complete picture of who was inside.

International reaction

France has condemned the siege on Mr Arafat's compound as "unacceptable" and called for it to be halted immediately.

Denmark, the current president of the European Union, said Israel's actions would neither curb terror nor improve security for its civilians.

The Egyptian President, Hosni Mubarak, has called on the United States to intervene immediately; and Jordan said Israel's actions threatened the stability of the region.

Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit of Turkey - Israel's principal ally in the region - also said he was "extremely upset" by an attack on "the legitimate representative" of the Palestinian people.