Palestinian PM threatens to quit

Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas is threatening to resign unless his party backs his tactics in talks with Israelis, Palestinian officials said.

The first casualty in the internal leadership crisis over the pace and content of peace moves was a meeting between Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Abbas called it off as the internal tensions rose, with some officials blaming Israel's refusal to release more prisoners and others citing lack of support for Abbas from fellow political leaders.

Also yesterday, Abbas resigned from the Central Committee of Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, said Hakam Balaawi, a Fatah official.

Palestinian security sources and witnesses said Israeli soldiers shot dead a Palestinian in the West Bank during an operation to arrest his brother, a wanted militant.

Israeli military sources said the soldiers opened fire after being shot at.

The incident followed a claim of responsibility from Islamic militants in Jenin for a suicide bombing that killed an Israeli woman on Tuesday.