The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Nitzanei Shalom

A Palestinian militant shot and killed two Israeli security guards early Friday at a factory along the divide between Israel and the West Bank, the military said - an attack likely to further complicate efforts to forge a peace deal between the Jewish state and Palestinian moderates.

Medics pronounced the two middle-aged guards dead at the scene, rescue services said, and troops began combing surrounding areas for traces of the assailant. No Palestinian militant group immediately claimed responsibility.

Riad al-Malki, the Palestinian foreign minister, condemned the attack, saying it was meant "to undermine the efforts by the Palestinian government to undertake full security responsibilities in the West Bank." The attack was also meant to embarrass Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas while he is in Washington for meetings with U.S. officials, al-Malki said.