After assassinating an unarmed man in Ramallah town center this morning Israeli soldiers entered the grounds of the Ramallah hospital, burst into a room and shot dead one man, and arrested four others - including a 55 year old.

The guardroom the soldiers attacked was strewn with bullet holes, and witnesses said a pool of the dead mans blood was on the floor.

In the past 24 hours the Israeli army has assassinated four people in the West Bank, which Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi described as "an attempt by Sharon to hide the scandals in the Likud party, by provoking a Palestinian response."

Israeli soldiers have killed ten people since the December 23; seven of these deaths were extra judicial executions, i.e. assassinations.

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