Residence of the Qassam-battered town of Sderot demonstrated outside the local home of Defense Minister Amir Peretz Saturday evening, demanding military force be used to stop Palestinian militants from launching the rockets.

The protesters concluded their demonstration with a march downtown. Two Qassams were fired at the Negev city Saturday morning. There were no damages or injuries in either incident.

Palestinian sources reported earlier Saturday that the Israel Defense Forces arrested three top Hamas government officials at a temporary roadblock north of Ramallah.

	Advertisement

IDF set up a roadblock at the entrance to the Palestinian village Beit Rima and arrested Director-General of the Palestinian Interior Ministry Rami Barghouti, the advisor to the Palestinian minister of women's affairs Alaa Rimawi and the coordinator Hamas' Change and Reform List in the Palestinian Legislative Council Mazen Rimawi.

All three government officials have been detained by the IDF several times in the past.

On Friday, Three Palestinians were killed and two wounded in Israel Defense Forces raids in the northern West Bank, Palestinian medics and relatives said.

In the Gaza Strip, the Israel Air Force destroyed a three-story structure in Jabalya that the army said was used to store weapons after warning residents to stay away from the area. There were no injuries.

Palestinian sources said Fadi Subuh, 27, and Mustafa Jabar, 19, were shot dead in the Al Faraa refugee camp, between Nablus and Jenin. The circumstances of the shooting were not clear, but Jabar's uncle said his nephew might have been throwing stones at army jeeps at the time.

The IDF said it fired at a gunman, who appears to be one of the fatalities, and a Palestinian man wielding an ax, who was lightly hurt and arrested.

In the village of Yamoun, west of Jenin, Ahmed Abul Hassan, 28, was killed by a bullet to the head while he stood on the roof of his home to watch the IDF raid, his relatives said. Two of Abul Hassan's brothers were wounded in the gunfire, the family said.

The IDF arrested four wanted Palestinians in the raid.

On Thursday, IDF troops killed three Palestinians, a civilian and two reportedly armed men, in separate incidents in the Gaza Strip. Two Israelis - one of them a soldier - were moderately wounded in two incidents in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.