41.   In an unrelated incident, Israeli forces shot and killed an armed Palestinian near a crossing point between Gaza and Israel, the army said.

42.   In response, Israeli warplanes attacked in southern Lebanon for the first time since the May withdrawal, striking what the army said were Hezbollah positions.

43.   In the border incident, gunmen fired from a hillside at Israeli vehicles in a protracted gun battle, the army said.

44.   In the Gaza Strip, Israeli soldiers shot and killed three Palestinian men who the army said were trying to plant a bomb near a Jewish settlement.

45.   In the second, the Israeli army said one of its planes flying over Lebanon had accidentally released a bomb over a civilian village, wounding six people.

46.   Israeli forces raided the West Bank cities of Tulkarem and Hebron on Thursday, the army said, arresting several Palestinian men.

47.   Israelis forces will continue to maintain a cordon around the two cities, the army said.

48.   Israeli officials apologized for the incident, and the army said the soldiers would face disciplinary action.

49.   Israeli troops briefly raided the village of Shawara, near Bethlehem and arrested six Palestinians before withdrawing, the army said.