Israeli troops killed a senior Islamic Jihad militant and another gunman from the group today.
Islamic Jihad said Nidal Abu Sa'da was a senior commander in the West Bank. A Palestinian security official named Abu Sa'da as head of the group's armed wing in the occupied territory.
An Israeli paramilitary border policeman was seriously wounded in the clash with gunmen suspected of involvement in a series of suicide bombings this year, the army Israeli claimed.
The fighting, during what Israel said was an operation to arrest militants near the city of Jenin, raised tensions just a week after the parliamentary vote, in which Hamas trounced Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's long-dominant Fatah.
Islamic Jihad, a group that like Hamas is committed to Israel's destruction, urged Hamas and other factions to step up attacks on the Jewish state in response to the raid. Hamas has largely observed a ceasefire for nearly a year.
Israel has called for a boycott of any Palestinian government that includes Hamas, and said it expected to suspend monthly tax payments to the cash-strapped Palestinian Authority, a severe financial blow.