Gaza City, November 5 (RHC)-- A senior leader of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas has called for a unified leadership by all Palestinian groups in the face of a recent surge in Israeli violence against Palestinians.

On Wednesday, Hamas Political Bureau chief Khaled Meshaal urged other groups to join "an operational leadership of the Intifada (uprising)... to put in place an agreed strategy for common struggle covering all options."

The recent deadly tensions between the Tel Aviv regime and Palestinians was triggered by Israel's imposition of sweeping restrictions on entries into the al-Aqsa Mosque compound in East Jerusalem and Israeli settlers' repeated attacks on the mosque.

Meshaal also called for "resistance in all of its forms, armed or not," to "confront the settlers and defend the Muslim holy places."

Earlier in the day, Israeli troops shot and killed another Palestinian near the city of al-Khalil (Hebron). According to the Palestinian Ma'an news agency, the Israelis claimed the victim had run over and injured two Israeli policemen in the occupied West Bank.

According to the latest figures by the Palestinian Health Ministry, at least 74 Palestinians have been killed and 2,355 more have been injured by Israeli forces since the beginning of October. At least 11 Israelis have also been killed during that period.