There have been several previous incidents in which Hamas militants were killed by the explosives they were apparently planning to use against Israeli targets.

Tuesday's explosion in the Ramallah suburb of Beitunia occurred not far from where the body of Hamas' chief bombmaker, Mohiyedine Sharif, was found last spring after a car explosion.

The circumstances of Sharif's death remain unclear. Hamas blamed Israel, which denied the accusation. The Palestinian Authority said Sharif had been killed in a Hamas power struggle and pointed the finger of blame at the Awadallah brothers.

Tuesday's explosion killed Hamas activist Zahran Ibrahim Zahran, according to Palestinian security officials, who said the car had been rigged with large amounts of explosives.

The two injured men were taken to Ramallah Hospital, where they were placed under police guard, the officials said.

Meanwhile in Hebron on Monday, shots were fired from the Palestinian-controlled sector of the city at a group of visiting Israelis as they were on the road leading to Tel Rumeida.

Esther Hizme, 52, of Herzliya was wounded in the knee.

The attack came days after shots were fired at a resident of nearby Kiryat Arba. It is the fifth time shots have been fired at Jews in the West Bank since the beginning of August, when two yeshiva students were shot and killed.