Bad News

NABLUS, West Bank - The Israeli army pulled its troops and armored vehicles out of Nablus on Tuesday after a three-day operation targeting Palestinian militants that brought life in the West Bank city to a standstill, Palestinians said.

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An estimated 50,000 people were confined to their homes in Nablus, the West Bank's commercial center, as troops combed houses and alleys for wanted men. One Palestinian man was killed, and the army said five militants were arrested and three weapons laboratories found.

At dawn, no Israeli forces were visible in Nablus. The army said it had lifted the curfew that shut down large parts of the city in recent days. But it would not confirm the end of the raid, the largest military operation in the West Bank in months, raising the possibility that troops might return.

Adli Yaish, the mayor of Nablus, said the Israeli forces were gone and called on residents to resume their normal lives.

"We have to continue living," Yaish said, urging students and teachers to attend school Tuesday. Municipal workers had already begun cleaning the streets in the raid's aftermath, Yaish said.

But Nablus district governor Kamal Sheikh said he feared the army had only briefly halted the operation.

"I think the Israeli military action is not over," Sheikh said.

By midafternoon, the city had largely come back to life. Schools and university studies reopened after two days of closure, streets were clogged with traffic and marketplaces were bustling with activity.

One Palestinian, Annan Tibi, 50, was killed in the operation. The army said he was killed Monday when troops fired at figures moving on the roof of a building