The Israeli army arrested 16 Palestinians in overnight raids, most of them in the southern city of Hebron, security sources said on Monday.

An Israeli army spokesperson told the Israel Radio that the detainees were wanted by the security and intelligence services.

Such detention raids have been taking place almost on daily basis since the beginning of the second Palestinian uprising in 2000.

Meanwhile, an Israeli settler hit a Palestinian schoolgirl with his car in the West Bank on Monday, said security sources.

The 10-year-old student was moderately wounded and transferred to a hospital in Hebron city, the sources said. A hospital official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said doctors treated the girl of bruises and decided to keep her for 24 hours under monitoring.

An Israeli ambulance had arrived at the scene but refused to evacuate the girl since she was not in critical condition. The Palestinians sent an ambulance to carry the girl to the hospital.

There has been no comment from Israel and it is unclear if the settler hit the girl purposely.