Violence in Israel, Palestinian territories jolts US peace mission

New Palestinian attacks on Israel and a move by Israeli tanks back into the West Bank town of Bethlehem broke a two-day lull in violence and jolted a US bid to broker a ceasefire.

US envoy Anthony Zinni had already hit a wall of mistrust when his efforts were further complicated by a Palestinian gunman's shooting spree in central Israel, a suicide bombing in east Jerusalem and clashes in Bethlehem.

Three Palestinians and one Israeli woman were killed in the latest spurt of bloodshed, which erupted as Zinni was going into talks with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, on the fourth day of his closely watched attempt to end nearly 18 months of violence.

A Palestinian man also died Sunday afternoon in a mysterious blast just outside Jerusalem, which Israeli police labelled "a working accident," implying a Palestinian militant had been trying to smuggle a bomb into Jerusalem.