Palestinian gunmen kill Israeli soldier in W Bank

NABLUS, West Bank, July 17 (Reuters) Palestinian gunmen ambushed a group of Israeli troops in the occupied West Bank today, killing one and wounding six others, witnesses and the army said.

They said a bomb was detonated among troops as they scoured the old city of Nablus, site of frequent clashes during more than 5 years of fighting. Initial reports were that the soldiers were in a vehicle, but it later emerged they were on foot.

Reuters Television footage showed a bloodied helmet, part of a boot, and abandoned bullet clips at the scene.

Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed wing of President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah faction, claimed responsibility for the ambush.

An Israeli military spokeswoman said the troops were in Nablus as part of a round-up of suspected Palestinian militants.

A senior commander said Israel was stepping up searches of the West Bank after receiving warnings that Palestinians could try to carry out attacks on the orders of Hizbollah, the Lebanese guerrilla group under a six-day-old Israeli assault.

''There are very specific intelligence alerts of impending terrorist attacks,'' Brigadier Meir Golan told Army Radio.

Hours later, Israeli police said they detained a Palestinian from the West Bank who was carrying a bomb in a bag. According to a police spokesman, the 25-year-old man told interrogators he was en route to carrying out an attack in Jerusalem.

REUTERS SHB DS1610