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Israeli Missile Strike Kills 2 Palestinian Militants in Gaza
Thursday, September 27, 2007
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israeli forces killed two Gaza militants in a
missile strike early Thursday, bringing the two-day death toll in Gaza
fighting to 11, hospital officials said.
Israel said it is targeting militants involved in firing rockets at Israeli
border towns. Eleven rockets and two dozen mortar shells have hit Israel
since Wednesday, the army said, despite warnings by Defense Minister Ehud
Barak that he is moving closer to ordering a large-scale military offensive
in Gaza. The rockets caused no injuries.
Last week, the Israeli government declared Gaza "hostile territory," setting
the stage for a possible cutoff of electricity to the impoverished coastal
territory that has 1.4 million residents.
On Wednesday, an Israeli missile strike targeted a jeep carrying members of
the Army of Islam, a small militant group involved in the March kidnapping
of a BBC journalist, since released, and the June 2006 capture of an Israeli
soldier.
Five passengers were killed, the Army of Islam said. The Israeli military
said the jeep was carrying rockets ready for use.
In northern Gaza, Israeli tanks and bulldozers briefly entered the town of
Beit Hanoun on Wednesday, following rocket fire from the area. At one point,
a tank shell was fired toward a group of people between two houses, killing
four and wounding 25, witnesses and hospital doctors said.
The army said the shell was fired toward militants carrying anti-tank
missiles.
Israeli forces withdrew from Beit Hanoun later Wednesday.
Early Thursday, Israeli aircraft fired a missile toward a group of militants
near Beit Hanoun, killing two and wounding five, hospital doctors said.
David Baker, an Israeli government spokesman, said Israel's strikes are part
of a "continuous policy of preventing terrorist activity against our
civilians, including our taking pre-emptive measures as needed to thwart
these attacks."
A top aide to the head of the Hamas government in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, said
the Israeli operations strengthened the resolve of Gazans. "The honorable
Palestinian blood shed by this Nazi army will only make us more steadfast,"
said the aide, Mohammed Madhoun.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military enforced a closure of the West Bank and Gaza
Strip during the weeklong Jewish holiday of Succot, which began at sunset
Wednesday. Blanket closures, including travel bans within the Palestinian
areas, are imposed during Jewish holidays, and restrictions are eased -
though not lifted - once the holidays are over.
Israeli Missile Strike Kills 2 Palestinian Militants in Gaza
Thursday, September 27, 2007
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip - Israeli forces killed two Gaza militants in a
missile strike early Thursday, bringing the two-day death toll in Gaza
fighting to 11, hospital officials said.
Israel said it is targeting militants involved in firing rockets at Israeli
border towns. Eleven rockets and two dozen mortar shells have hit Israel
since Wednesday, the army said, despite warnings by Defense Minister Ehud
Barak that he is moving closer to ordering a large-scale military offensive
in Gaza. The rockets caused no injuries.
Last week, the Israeli government declared Gaza "hostile territory," setting
the stage for a possible cutoff of electricity to the impoverished coastal
territory that has 1.4 million residents.
On Wednesday, an Israeli missile strike targeted a jeep carrying members of
the Army of Islam, a small militant group involved in the March kidnapping
of a BBC journalist, since released, and the June 2006 capture of an Israeli
soldier.
Five passengers were killed, the Army of Islam said. The Israeli military
said the jeep was carrying rockets ready for use.
In northern Gaza, Israeli tanks and bulldozers briefly entered the town of
Beit Hanoun on Wednesday, following rocket fire from the area. At one point,
a tank shell was fired toward a group of people between two houses, killing
four and wounding 25, witnesses and hospital doctors said.
The army said the shell was fired toward militants carrying anti-tank
missiles.
Israeli forces withdrew from Beit Hanoun later Wednesday.
Early Thursday, Israeli aircraft fired a missile toward a group of militants
near Beit Hanoun, killing two and wounding five, hospital doctors said.
David Baker, an Israeli government spokesman, said Israel's strikes are part
of a "continuous policy of preventing terrorist activity against our
civilians, including our taking pre-emptive measures as needed to thwart
these attacks."
A top aide to the head of the Hamas government in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, said
the Israeli operations strengthened the resolve of Gazans. "The honorable
Palestinian blood shed by this Nazi army will only make us more steadfast,"
said the aide, Mohammed Madhoun.
Meanwhile, the Israeli military enforced a closure of the West Bank and Gaza
Strip during the weeklong Jewish holiday of Succot, which began at sunset
Wednesday. Blanket closures, including travel bans within the Palestinian
areas, are imposed during Jewish holidays, and restrictions are eased -
though not lifted - once the holidays are over.
