Israel prepares to demolish home of Palestinian attacker

Israel's military has taken preliminary steps to demolish the home of a Palestinian gunman who killed three Israelis in a Jerusalem-area settlement on Tuesday.

Nimr Mahmoud Ahmed Jamal opened fire at the entrance to the illegal settlement of Har Adar northwest near Jerusalem, killing three Israelis before being shot dead.

Israeli military forces on Wednesday set up checkpoints around the adjacent town of Beit Surik, where Jamal is from, mapping out his home ahead of its demolition.

A village-wide curfew was imposed on the town, with villagers only allowed to leave for humanitarian reasons after undergoing security checks.

Israel also cancelled the Israeli work permits of several of Jamal's relatives in response to Tuesday's attack.

Hard-line Israeli nationalist party Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel is Our Home) said it would seek to revive a bill that would implement the death penalty for 'convicted terrorists'.

Israel demolishes the homes of Palestinian attackers as a deterrent measure, but Palestinians and the international community consider the policy collective punishment.

Punitive demolitions were first introduced under the British Mandate, although Israel has continued to use the policy.

During the Second Intifada more than 3,900 Palestinians were left homeless by demolitions designed to punish the actions of 333 Palestinian suspects, Israeli rights group B'Tselem says.