RAMALLAH, West Bank ? Senior Palestinian officials on Wednesday welcomed a call by Israel’s new opposition leader to restart peace talks but held back outright endorsement ” apparently fearing it would hurt the ex-general’s chances in January elections.

Many Palestinians are eager for the removal of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who ” during 20 months in office ” has ravaged the Palestinian security forces, waged an intense crackdown against militant groups and sent troops to reoccupy and impose curfews on most Palestinian cities in the West Bank.

Palestinian Parliament speaker Ahmed Qureia said Amram Mitzna’s easy victory in the Labor Party primary Tuesday “renews the hope of reviving the peace process … ending the violence and reaching a final solution based on two states living side by side in peace and security.”

But Sharon’s Likud Party is the heavy favorite in the Jan. 28 general election, and some Palestinian officials said there was little the Palestinians could do to swing Israeli voters toward Mitzna.

Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat struck the most cautious note. “We are not interfering in (Israel’s) internal affairs,” Arafat said. “Our hands will be extended” to any Israeli leader prepared to negotiate.

Mitzna told Israeli Radio the Palestinian statements could be a good sign.

“If the biggest of our enemies is congratulating me on my election, perhaps that is a sign that in the future there will be someone with whom to talk and something to talk about,” he said.

In the West Bank and Gaza Strip, violence continued. Early today, dozens of Israeli tanks entered three villages in southern Gaza, residents said, and destroyed the house of a suspected militant.

Residents said soldiers surrounded the house of a militant activist, ordered the family out and knocked down the structure with a bulldozer.

For several months, Israel has destroyed houses of suspected militants to try to discourage attacks. Palestinians and human rights groups have denounced the practice, charging that it harms innocent relatives.

Israeli troops killed a Palestinian teenager Wednesday during clashes in Tulkarem, where fighting the day before claimed five Palestinian lives.