The shooting near Hebron occured at approximately 8:30 P.M., west of the Halhul bridge. Three members of the Temporary International Presence in Hebron (TIPH) were riding westward on the Trans-Judea highway when they came under fire from short range.

The two dead are Major Cengiz Soytunc, of Turkey, and Katrine Brooks, a Swiss citizen. The injured man is Captain Huseyin Ozaslan, also Turkish. The injured observer suffered light wounds and was evacuated to Shaarei Tzedek Hospital in Jerusalem.

Ozaslan told Israel Radio that he clearly saw the attacker. He said that the man was armed in fatigues of the PA's security forces and was carrying an AK-47 assault rifle.

"We shouted that we are observers, members of TIPH," he said. "But he did not hear us and continued to shoot."

He added that the gunman "emptied a whole magazine" into their car.

IDF sources said that the shooting occured from a southerly direction, inside territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority.

Shortly after the incident, shots were fired against an IDF position nearby. No soldiers were injured and the force returned fire.

Palestinian security sources tried to argue in talks with reporters yesterday that IDF soldiers killed the two observers. However, their claims were thwarted by the surviving observer's testimony.