Palestinian officials say Israeli soldiers have killed two Palestinian militants in a targeted attack near the West Bank town of Jenin.

The security officials say the men were shot dead by an army patrol which confronted them as they were crossing a field on a tractor.

One of the men was said to be Shaman Sobih, a Hamas activist on Israel's wanted list whose home in the village of Burkin had been destroyed two months ago.

Separately, another man was arrested during a rare early morning raid on Jericho, Palestinian officials said.

Israel confirmed it had detained a suspected member of the Islamic Jihad group in Jericho - the only large West Bank town not under Israeli occupation.

Palestinians identified the man as Tawfiq al-Zubin, said to have escaped from an Israeli prison five years ago.