Israel arrests two suspected of murdering settlement guard

Attack at Ariel was claimed by a Palestinian militant group

Israeli soldiers take positions during clashes with Palestinians in THE village of Azzun in the occupied West Bank after the funeral of Yahya Adwan, who was killed during an Israeli army operation. AFP

Israeli troops close off the main entrance to Azzun, near the West Bank city of Qalqilya, after Adwan was killed early on Saturday. EPA

An Israeli soldier guards the main entrance to Azzun village in the West Bank. EPA

Palestinian militants fire a salute during the funeral of Yahya Adwan in Azzun. EPA

Mourners attend the funeral of Palestinian Yahya Adwan at the West Bank village of Azzun. EPA

Mourners attend the funeral of Yahya Adwan. EPA

The Red Crescent said three Palestinians were shot in the legs with live fire during clashes bwteen Israeli troops and gunmen at Adwan's funeral. AFP

Yahya Sinwar, head of Hamas in Gaza, greets his supporters upon his arrival at a public meeting in Gaza City. AP

Yahya Sinwar shakes greets supporters at the meeting hall near the Gaza seaside. AP

Yahya Sinwar greets members of the the Ezzedine Al Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas. AFP

Israeli forces have arrested two suspects over the killing of a guard at a Jewish settlement in the occupied West Bank.

The Israeli army said the guard was on duty at the entrance to the Ariel settlement on Friday night when attackers opened fire, fatally wounding him.

He was later identified as Vyacheslav Golev, 23.

"After intense intelligence and operational activity by the [domestic security agency] Shin Bet, police special forces and the army, two suspects were arrested this evening," police said after a day-long manhunt on Saturday.

The attack was claimed by Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigade, one of the main militant groups active in the Israeli-occupied territory.

The armed pair were arrested in the Palestinian village of Qarawat Bani Hassan, north-west of Ariel, the army said.

"No terrorist will escape us," Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said after news of the suspects' capture.

Defence Minister Benny Gantz took to Twitter to thank the security services for the arrests and said "the state of Israel has always defeated terrorism and will do everything necessary ... to defeat it today as well".

The army said it had stepped up its presence in the West Bank, with security forces making arrests and seizing weapons in Bruqin, west of Ariel, and in the Balata refugee camp near Nablus.

The Palestinian Health Ministry said a Palestinian was shot dead on Friday in an Israeli army operation in the northern West Bank town of Azzun, about 20 kilometres from Ariel.

Palestinian news agency Wafa identified the man as Yahya Adwan, 27.

Palestinians and Israeli soldiers clashed after Adwan's funeral on Saturday and the Red Crescent said three Palestinians were shot in the legs with live fire.

The Israeli army said "dozens of Palestinians instigated a violent riot adjacent to the town of Azzun" and attacked soldiers, "who responded with riot dispersal means and live fire".

The killing of the Palestinian youth and the Israeli guard brought a deadly conclusion to a Friday marked by clashes at Jerusalem's flashpoint Al Aqsa Mosque compound, a site also considered sacred by Jews.

At least 42 people were injured on Friday alone, the Palestinian Red Crescent said, raising the number of Palestinians wounded at the site to nearly 300 over a two-week period.

On Saturday, the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, gave a warning of attacks on synagogues and a "great battle" if Israeli forces carried out more raids at Al Aqsa Mosque.

"Whoever takes the decision to repeat this scene [of sending Israeli forces inside the mosque] will be taking the decision to destroy thousands of synagogues across the world," said the group's chief Yahya Sinwar in statements carried by AFP.

The violence in occupied East Jerusalem has raised fears of another armed conflict, such as the 11-day war last year between Israel and Hamas, triggered in part by similar unrest at Al Aqsa.

The Al Aqsa tension comes against a backdrop of wider violence since March 22 in Israel and the occupied West Bank.

Thirteen Israelis, including an Arab-Israeli police officer, and two Ukrainians have been killed in separate attacks, two of which were carried out in the Tel Aviv area.

A total of 27 Palestinians and three Israeli-Arabs have died during the same period, including some Israel identified as perpetrators of attacks, and Palestinians were killed by Israeli security forces in West Bank operations.