Israeli forces and armed Palestinians have exchanged gunfire at the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem as the three-week standoff continues. 

The latest shooting broke out as white smoke swirled near the church, built over the spot where Christians believe Jesus, their Messiah, was born. 

Dozens of Palestinians, some armed, took shelter in the church April 2 when Israeli troops pushed into Bethlehem as part of a West Bank offensive after a string of suicide bombings in Israel. The Israeli army says it will surround the church until all wanted Palestinians inside either surrender or are captured. 

Israeli forces also still surround the Ramallah compound of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, despite leaving most of the city on Sunday. 

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State William Burns met with Mr. Arafat in the besieged compound Monday. A Palestinian spokesman says that in the talks, Mr. Arafat insisted on a total Israeli withdrawal from Palestinian towns and villages. 

Mr. Arafat says a ceasefire is impossible while Israeli troops continue to keep him a virtual prisoner. Israel says it will not relax its grip until Mr. Arafat hands over the suspected killers of Israel's tourism minister last October. 

In a Ramallah square, masked gunmen shot three Palestinian men accused of being informers for Israel, killing one and wounding the other two. Israeli forces killed five Palestinians in separate incidents elsewhere. Two men were killed while Israeli troops staged an arrest raid into a West Bank village. In the Gaza Strip, Israeli troops, reported to be an undercover unit, killed two Palestinians in a clash near the Boureij refugee camp. 

Some information for this report provided by AP and AFP.

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