Israeli soldier abducted, killed by Palestinian

A Palestinian lured an Israeli soldier to a village in the West Bank and killed him with the intention of trading the body for his brother jailed for terror attacks, Israel's intelligence agency said today, in a slaying that casts another shadow on US mediated peace talks that restarted this summer.
The killing further sours the atmosphere for the Israeli-Palestinian negotiations, which resumed in July for the first time in nearly five years. The deaths of several Palestinians in Israeli raids in the West Bank intended to detain militants involved in attacks has also caused tensions, with the Palestinian side cancelling one session last month in response. Israel has made its security concerns a top priority in talks.

The 20-year-old soldier was reported missing late yesterday and Israeli forces began looking for him, the Shin Bet intelligence agency said. The search led the troops to Nidal Amar, a 42-year-old Palestinian from Beit Amin village near the city of Qalqiliya in the northern West Bank.
Amar was arrested and confessed to killing the soldier, whom he knew because they worked at the same restaurant in the coastal city of Bat Yam in central Israel, the agency said. The military identified the slain soldier as Sgt. Tomer Hazan from Bat Yam.
According to Shin Bet, the Palestinian recounted how he had picked up Hazan in a taxi today after convincing him to accept a ride. He took the Israeli to an open field, killed him and hid his body in a well, the agency said.

Israeli forces raided Amar's home early today, interrogating and arresting Amar and his brother.

Shin Bet said Amar confessed to intending to trade Hazan's body for another brother, in an Israeli jail since 2003 for his role in several terror attacks. He then showed the Israeli forces where the body was hidden.
The agency did now say how Amar convinced the soldier to join him on the ride yesterday.
A senior military official said initial investigations suggested that Palestinian individuals planned the attack on their own, not on the orders of any militant groups. The official did not elaborate on who else may have been involved in the plot besides Amar. The jailed bother had been involved in shootings and bombings, the official said.