Mideast violence continues

JERUSALEM -- Israeli soldiers, saying they had been warned of an attack, shot and killed four Palestinians near a Jewish settlement's vineyard in the West Bank on Sunday. The shootings brought the weekend Palestinian death toll to 12, including two children and several other civilians.\nSenior Israeli officials apologized for the loss of civilian lives, while Palestinians and some Israelis charged the army has lost its sense of restraint in its drive to crush the Palestinian uprising.\n"Our hearts are full of sorrow," said Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres. He called the civilian deaths "very regrettable" and said he was sure military officials "will take every necessary step to prevent it from happening again."\nThe army said the four Palestinians killed Sunday were trying to cut through a fence near the settlement of Kiryat Arba, outside Hebron. It said its soldiers had been warned that four Palestinians would attempt an attack in the area and opened fire when they saw the men. The four were killed near the settlement's vineyard, settlers and Palestinian witnesses said.\nThe army said it was checking claims the men were led away.\nOther weekend violence included a missile attack by Israeli helicopters that killed a militant and four civilians, a gunbattle that killed the son of a local militant leader, and the shooting death of a Palestinian who infiltrated a Jewish settlement in the West Bank, shooting and wounding two Israelis.\nA Palestinian wounded by shrapnel from an Israeli tank shell in Nablus last month died of his wounds Sunday, hospital staff in the West Bank town said.\nThe military operations are part of an Israeli campaign against militants after Palestinian suicide bombings in Israel that have killed hundreds. Israelis and Palestinians are locked in a cycle of attacks and counterattacks that began in September 2000.\nIsrael has said the loss of civilian life is an unintended consequence of its campaign to stop suicide bombings. But some are asking if there has been a change in military policy giving soldiers more leeway when deciding whether to shoot.\nPalestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo called for an end to recent talks with the Israelis that have included a tentative agreement envisioning Israeli pullbacks in the West Bank and Gaza in exchange for Palestinian assurances against terror.\n"After each meeting with the Israelis a new massacre happens somewhere in the Palestinian territories," he said.