22 june 2012
Amnesty International visited the father of 14-year Mo’min al-Dam, killed by an Israeli airstrike on Gaza©Amnesty International
Amnesty International delegates investigate the killing of two children during the latest escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip
We were interviewing a family in the al-Karama area of Gaza City when, for the first time since the escalation of violence began, we heard rockets being fired from close by.
“Welcome to Gaza,” said one of the children sitting in the room, looking at us.
His smile and sarcastic comment made us wonder about childhood in this place. Hope is a powerful quality of Gaza’s children. That is if they remain alive.
On Wednesday afternoon, we rushed to al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City after hearing that a number of people injured by Israeli air strikes had been taken there.
When we arrived, we were told that among those brought in was the body of 14-year-old Mo’min al-Dam, killed by an Israeli airstrike on a field in the Zeitoun neighbourhood south of Gaza City.
At the morgue, the gate-keeper pulled out his body for one of the family members to see.
The notion that there was still hope in children died when we saw his body. There was no smile on his dead face; it was the sight of a future killed.
It was not a sight that we could bear for long. We went back to the hospital ward to find Mo’min’s father, injured in the back of his head and neck by shrapnel in the same air strike.
A large number of people were gathered around the hospital bed of the 67-year-old blind man, who was crying loudly to another member of the family, “Our adored one is gone, our love is gone, and nothing is worth anything anymore.”
Grieving family members tried to calm him down.
The father spoke with difficulty, pausing every once in a while to grasp some breath or to relieve himself of the pain of speaking about his child so soon after his death.
“We went out for a picnic under the trees on a piece of land that my wife had inherited. It was only the three of us – me, Mo’min and his mother. We ate and were resting and Mo’min was making us coffee over a fire some 6 metres away.
“I was lying down and all of a sudden I heard an explosion. I yelled for Mo’min, but there was no answer. I yelled for my wife, and then I heard her crying that they had killed Mo’min. She put the body of my dead boy on my lap. I felt the blood and I don’t know what happened after that. I found myself in an ambulance which brought me here.”
Later, we went to the site where the boy was killed and interviewed people in the surrounding area, including other relatives.
Although the site is sometimes used by Palestinian armed groups to launch rockets into Israel, there were no rockets launched from the area that day, according to the family of another young girl who was in a field nearby and was injured by shrapnel from the same targeted missile fired by the Israeli drone.
Other Palestinian civilians have been among the nine killed and approximately 20 injured in Israeli air strikes on different areas in the Gaza Strip over the past few days.
But Israeli air strikes have not been the only cause of casualties inside Gaza
Amnesty International delegates investigate the killing of two children during the latest escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip
We were interviewing a family in the al-Karama area of Gaza City when, for the first time since the escalation of violence began, we heard rockets being fired from close by.
“Welcome to Gaza,” said one of the children sitting in the room, looking at us.
His smile and sarcastic comment made us wonder about childhood in this place. Hope is a powerful quality of Gaza’s children. That is if they remain alive.
On Wednesday afternoon, we rushed to al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City after hearing that a number of people injured by Israeli air strikes had been taken there.
When we arrived, we were told that among those brought in was the body of 14-year-old Mo’min al-Dam, killed by an Israeli airstrike on a field in the Zeitoun neighbourhood south of Gaza City.
At the morgue, the gate-keeper pulled out his body for one of the family members to see.
The notion that there was still hope in children died when we saw his body. There was no smile on his dead face; it was the sight of a future killed.
It was not a sight that we could bear for long. We went back to the hospital ward to find Mo’min’s father, injured in the back of his head and neck by shrapnel in the same air strike.
A large number of people were gathered around the hospital bed of the 67-year-old blind man, who was crying loudly to another member of the family, “Our adored one is gone, our love is gone, and nothing is worth anything anymore.”
Grieving family members tried to calm him down.
The father spoke with difficulty, pausing every once in a while to grasp some breath or to relieve himself of the pain of speaking about his child so soon after his death.
“We went out for a picnic under the trees on a piece of land that my wife had inherited. It was only the three of us – me, Mo’min and his mother. We ate and were resting and Mo’min was making us coffee over a fire some 6 metres away.
“I was lying down and all of a sudden I heard an explosion. I yelled for Mo’min, but there was no answer. I yelled for my wife, and then I heard her crying that they had killed Mo’min. She put the body of my dead boy on my lap. I felt the blood and I don’t know what happened after that. I found myself in an ambulance which brought me here.”
Later, we went to the site where the boy was killed and interviewed people in the surrounding area, including other relatives.
Although the site is sometimes used by Palestinian armed groups to launch rockets into Israel, there were no rockets launched from the area that day, according to the family of another young girl who was in a field nearby and was injured by shrapnel from the same targeted missile fired by the Israeli drone.
Other Palestinian civilians have been among the nine killed and approximately 20 injured in Israeli air strikes on different areas in the Gaza Strip over the past few days.
But Israeli air strikes have not been the only cause of casualties inside Gaza
Just one day before Mo’min’s death, also in the Zeitoun neighbourhood, two-year-old Hadeel Ahmad Haddad was killed in her home and her eight-year-old cousin was severely injured.
After speaking to Hadeel’s family, examining the site and talking to residents of the area, it became clear that her death was most likely caused by a rocket launched by a Palestinian armed group from an orchard next to the house. The rocket appears to have gone through one of the walls on the third floor, causing bricks and debris to land on Hadeel and her cousin who were outside the front of the house.
Hadeel and her cousin are not the first Palestinian civilians in Gaza to have been killed or injured by rockets launched by Palestinian armed groups..
Scores of indiscriminate rockets have been fired into southern Israel by Palestinian armed groups over the past few days, prompting school closures.
The reasons for the recent escalation of violence that we have witnessed this week are unclear.
Palestinian armed groups from time to time fire indiscriminate rockets into Israeli territory, but the Israeli military announced that some of the air strikes on Gaza were in response to the killing of a construction worker near Israel’s southern border with Egypt by armed Saudi and Egyptian infiltrators on 17 June.
An Islamist armed group announced they were behind that attack, and to Amnesty International’s knowledge, no Palestinian armed groups have claimed responsibility.
Whatever the reasons for this latest escalation, children such as Mo’min and Hadeel are the innocent victims of violence in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The killing of the two Palestinian children in Gaza this week is a stark reminder that all sides must ensure the safety – and most of all the lives – of civilians.
After speaking to Hadeel’s family, examining the site and talking to residents of the area, it became clear that her death was most likely caused by a rocket launched by a Palestinian armed group from an orchard next to the house. The rocket appears to have gone through one of the walls on the third floor, causing bricks and debris to land on Hadeel and her cousin who were outside the front of the house.
Hadeel and her cousin are not the first Palestinian civilians in Gaza to have been killed or injured by rockets launched by Palestinian armed groups..
Scores of indiscriminate rockets have been fired into southern Israel by Palestinian armed groups over the past few days, prompting school closures.
The reasons for the recent escalation of violence that we have witnessed this week are unclear.
Palestinian armed groups from time to time fire indiscriminate rockets into Israeli territory, but the Israeli military announced that some of the air strikes on Gaza were in response to the killing of a construction worker near Israel’s southern border with Egypt by armed Saudi and Egyptian infiltrators on 17 June.
An Islamist armed group announced they were behind that attack, and to Amnesty International’s knowledge, no Palestinian armed groups have claimed responsibility.
Whatever the reasons for this latest escalation, children such as Mo’min and Hadeel are the innocent victims of violence in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The killing of the two Palestinian children in Gaza this week is a stark reminder that all sides must ensure the safety – and most of all the lives – of civilians.
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A group of veteran Israeli soldiers who served the West Bank and Gaza have spoken out on camera about their experiences in the army.
The Israeli organization Breaking the Silence has collected testimonies from 800 veteran Israeli soldiers who served in the West Bank and Gaza. In a new campaign, it has released video testimonies of six former soldiers describing their experiences. Amit served in Ramallah, Hebron and the northern West Bank during the second intifada. He describes an incident in which an Israeli commander swung his rifle at the jaw of a Palestinian during a tense situation at a roadblock near Jerusalem. "Beyond the fact that the guy fell to the ground, bleeding and screaming in pain, and of course all of the other Palestinians only grew angrier, it took us a long time to gain control of the mess and, of course, we had to more aggressive, cocking our weapons and such." He says witnessing first hand what goes on the West Bank shattered his worldview. "Going from a place where I was sure that we are the scapegoat, the miserable ones being killed, I saw a reality that, most of the time, was the opposite. "I saw me running after people, I saw myself pointing a gun at a 3-year-old girl, I saw me and my friends cuffing people, checking people, detaining people. questioning people, arresting people. In most cases, it was for nothing." |
Yehuda Shaul, one of the founders of Breaking the Silence, says he did everything he was required to as a fighter -- and later a commander -- in the Israeli army.
"If the mission right now is to keep the kids out of school, then the kids won't go to school. If the mission is to disperse a funeral because of the curfew, then the family ... will not finish burying their dead relative. It will leave the corpse there and leave. And if they don't do it, they'll get stun grenades and gas."
"Can you even imagine a situation of an Israeli family at a funeral and the police comes to disperse them?"
Yehuda says he talks about his service because "if we don't talk ... none of us will know what goes on there."
He says the most memorable part of his service was watching Palestinians getting beaten up by settlers in Hebron, while under orders not to touch them.
Another soldier Sagi, who also served in Hebron, recalls a procession of Israeli children burning an effigy of a member of the anti-settlement organization Peace Now.
"I understood that all of the things that I thought -- that there are boundaries, that at the end of the day we're on the same side -- that, from my point of view, is no longer the case. And from their point of view I'm not legitimate, and if they knew my political opinions they could replace the doll with me."
Sagi says he finds people prefer not to listen to his experiences of the army, and those that do listen think that his experience was isolated, and perhaps he was "a soldier who transgressed" and should be put on trial.
"Maybe I really should be put on trial - but if I need to be tried, as one of the humane soldiers who served in the territories, I guess we should try all Israeli soldiers," he says.
'We're ruining people's lives on a daily basis'
Yael served as a scout in Gaza, monitoring a live video feed of the Gaza border.
"We're kneaded and molded to see something suspicious in everything we see. I look into the cameras and I don't see a donkey, a dog or a cart. I see a vehicle that can get a charge across, a vehicle that can get weapons across ... It's always suspicious."
She explained: "There's no routine there, it's not someone throwing his garbage out, it's an explosive."
She describes seeing an elderly shepherd, "a grandpa, a really old man with his sheep," too close to the fence. She reported him to the combat engineering force. "I was conditioned to see shepherds and sheep herds as intelligence scouts."
Israeli forces fired in the air, startling the sheep, but the shepherd remained. Soldiers then shot the ground near the sheep "and they were startled again but the shepherd was determined to stay there. He didn't want to leave, he wanted to stay there."
The soldiers shot a sheep.
"(The shepherd) went to the sheep and tried to pick it up and it was full of blood and he tried to pick it up and take it back and they continued to shoot."
"The sheep didn't die but he had to leave it there and run away, they would've shot him and the rest of the sheep. He ran back and the sheep stayed there until it died."
"Seeing it from the other side, it was like a video game, so detached from reality. So what if we shoot animals.
"(For the Palestinians) it's the exact opposite ... people just come and shoot your animals, your livelihood, you. And it's fine. It's like it's fine.
"We're ruining people's lives on a daily basis."
Yael said she was testifying because she thought "people should know what's happening there."
"It's not the Israeli Defense Force defending us against horrible terrorists who want to destroy the Jewish people. They are people who live here and who have lived here when we weren't here and they're trying to live and we're the stronger power. And we use that power full on, without any problem. I think people should know that."
In other testimonies, a soldier describes an incident in which a company of soldiers, including the battalion commander, assaulted a detained Palestinian.
A soldier in an elite unit recalls an officer being ridiculed for not following an order to shoot an elderly, sick Palestinian who had gone back into his home to get his medication during an arrest raid.
The full testimonies can be viewed at www.discovertheterritories.com
"If the mission right now is to keep the kids out of school, then the kids won't go to school. If the mission is to disperse a funeral because of the curfew, then the family ... will not finish burying their dead relative. It will leave the corpse there and leave. And if they don't do it, they'll get stun grenades and gas."
"Can you even imagine a situation of an Israeli family at a funeral and the police comes to disperse them?"
Yehuda says he talks about his service because "if we don't talk ... none of us will know what goes on there."
He says the most memorable part of his service was watching Palestinians getting beaten up by settlers in Hebron, while under orders not to touch them.
Another soldier Sagi, who also served in Hebron, recalls a procession of Israeli children burning an effigy of a member of the anti-settlement organization Peace Now.
"I understood that all of the things that I thought -- that there are boundaries, that at the end of the day we're on the same side -- that, from my point of view, is no longer the case. And from their point of view I'm not legitimate, and if they knew my political opinions they could replace the doll with me."
Sagi says he finds people prefer not to listen to his experiences of the army, and those that do listen think that his experience was isolated, and perhaps he was "a soldier who transgressed" and should be put on trial.
"Maybe I really should be put on trial - but if I need to be tried, as one of the humane soldiers who served in the territories, I guess we should try all Israeli soldiers," he says.
'We're ruining people's lives on a daily basis'
Yael served as a scout in Gaza, monitoring a live video feed of the Gaza border.
"We're kneaded and molded to see something suspicious in everything we see. I look into the cameras and I don't see a donkey, a dog or a cart. I see a vehicle that can get a charge across, a vehicle that can get weapons across ... It's always suspicious."
She explained: "There's no routine there, it's not someone throwing his garbage out, it's an explosive."
She describes seeing an elderly shepherd, "a grandpa, a really old man with his sheep," too close to the fence. She reported him to the combat engineering force. "I was conditioned to see shepherds and sheep herds as intelligence scouts."
Israeli forces fired in the air, startling the sheep, but the shepherd remained. Soldiers then shot the ground near the sheep "and they were startled again but the shepherd was determined to stay there. He didn't want to leave, he wanted to stay there."
The soldiers shot a sheep.
"(The shepherd) went to the sheep and tried to pick it up and it was full of blood and he tried to pick it up and take it back and they continued to shoot."
"The sheep didn't die but he had to leave it there and run away, they would've shot him and the rest of the sheep. He ran back and the sheep stayed there until it died."
"Seeing it from the other side, it was like a video game, so detached from reality. So what if we shoot animals.
"(For the Palestinians) it's the exact opposite ... people just come and shoot your animals, your livelihood, you. And it's fine. It's like it's fine.
"We're ruining people's lives on a daily basis."
Yael said she was testifying because she thought "people should know what's happening there."
"It's not the Israeli Defense Force defending us against horrible terrorists who want to destroy the Jewish people. They are people who live here and who have lived here when we weren't here and they're trying to live and we're the stronger power. And we use that power full on, without any problem. I think people should know that."
In other testimonies, a soldier describes an incident in which a company of soldiers, including the battalion commander, assaulted a detained Palestinian.
A soldier in an elite unit recalls an officer being ridiculed for not following an order to shoot an elderly, sick Palestinian who had gone back into his home to get his medication during an arrest raid.
The full testimonies can be viewed at www.discovertheterritories.com
Occupation forces attack citizens in Ain al-Hilweh in Jordan Valley
Five Palestinians were injured including two women, on Thursday, in Ainal-Hilweh in Wadi al-Maleh northern Jordan Valley during clashes with the Israeli forces who tried to confiscate a water tank.
Local sources told PIC that the citizens have been subjected to severe beatings when soldiers surrounded the hamlet, and tried to confiscate the water tanks in order to force the Bedouin people to leave the region under the pretext that it is a military zone.
For its part, the village council in wadi al-Maleh and the Bedouin regions in the Jordan Valley said in a press release that the occupation policies in the region aim at pressuring the residents and displacing them, adding that the occupation confiscated 13 tankers in the Bedouin regions.
Local sources told PIC that the citizens have been subjected to severe beatings when soldiers surrounded the hamlet, and tried to confiscate the water tanks in order to force the Bedouin people to leave the region under the pretext that it is a military zone.
For its part, the village council in wadi al-Maleh and the Bedouin regions in the Jordan Valley said in a press release that the occupation policies in the region aim at pressuring the residents and displacing them, adding that the occupation confiscated 13 tankers in the Bedouin regions.
Israeli gunboats shelled a beach in northern Gaza late Thursday night, witnesses said.
The shelling caused two explosions but not injuries were reported, a Ma'an correspondent said.
An Israeli military spokeswoman was not immediately familiar with the incident.
The military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine said it fired four rockets from Gaza on Friday.
The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades said it launched two rockets toward Ashkelon, one at the Sufa crossing area and another at Meftahim, east of Khan Younis.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said two rockets landed in southern Israel, causing no injuries.
The shelling caused two explosions but not injuries were reported, a Ma'an correspondent said.
An Israeli military spokeswoman was not immediately familiar with the incident.
The military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine said it fired four rockets from Gaza on Friday.
The Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades said it launched two rockets toward Ashkelon, one at the Sufa crossing area and another at Meftahim, east of Khan Younis.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said two rockets landed in southern Israel, causing no injuries.
Israeli air strike kills Gaza man, breaks truce
An Israeli air strike killed a Palestinian man on Friday in the Gaza Strip, Israel and Hamas medical officials said, two days after an Egyptian-brokered truce had calmed an outbreak of cross-border violence.
The strike in central Gaza followed the firing of two rockets at Israel earlier in the day.
An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed there was an air strike after a Hamas medical official in Gaza said one person was killed and another was wounded in the attack.
The strike in central Gaza followed the firing of two rockets at Israel earlier in the day.
An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed there was an air strike after a Hamas medical official in Gaza said one person was killed and another was wounded in the attack.
21 june 2012
IOF soldiers engage in clashes with civilians in Al-Khalil village
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) stormed Doura village in Al-Khalil on Thursday and engaged in violent clashes with civilians, eyewitnesses said.
They told the PIC reporter that a number of IOF jeeps stormed the city from three axes as military ambulances escorted by a patrol stationed near a building in Abu Hilal area.
The witnesses said that the IOF jeeps roamed the village streets and fired teargas canisters and metal bullets at the villagers who tried to confront them.
The IOF distributed leaflets in Al-Khalil province signed by the military commander threatening the citizens against confronting his troops in any of their incursions.
US Condemns Israel, Palestine for Violence Attacks
"The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms Yesterday's, Wednesday, 20th June, provocative attack on a mosque in the West Bank village of Kfar Jabaa near Ramallah." Said Victoria Nuland, the State Department Spokesperson, "Hateful, dangerous and provocative actions such as these are never justified."
She also said, "We note that the Israeli Government has condemned this heinous attack and pledged to bring the perpetrators to justice. We look to Israeli law enforcement officials to do so expeditiously."
Nuland also condemned the rocket fire from Gaza into southern Israel, saying that "there is no justification for the targeting of innocent civilians and call on those responsible to take immediate action to stop these cowardly acts."
Nuland called on the two political parties to exercise restraint and stop the violence.
IDF Chief Gantz: Israeli Army Will Respond Harshly to any Coming Escalation
On Thursday, the 21st of June, IDF Chief, Benny Gantz, threatened that the Israeli army will respond harshly if any escalation of violence from within the Gaza Strip continued.
Gantz told settlers that if the security situation continued to worsen on the Southern borders then the army would be ready to respond to any Palestinian attempt to harm Israeli civilians and soldiers.
Gants made these statements during an address at a graduation ceremony for Israeli soldiers. He also talked about the necessity to recruit both settlers and civilians into the army, especially in a time when the State of Israel faces 'dangerous threats' to use his wording.
They told the PIC reporter that a number of IOF jeeps stormed the city from three axes as military ambulances escorted by a patrol stationed near a building in Abu Hilal area.
The witnesses said that the IOF jeeps roamed the village streets and fired teargas canisters and metal bullets at the villagers who tried to confront them.
The IOF distributed leaflets in Al-Khalil province signed by the military commander threatening the citizens against confronting his troops in any of their incursions.
US Condemns Israel, Palestine for Violence Attacks
"The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms Yesterday's, Wednesday, 20th June, provocative attack on a mosque in the West Bank village of Kfar Jabaa near Ramallah." Said Victoria Nuland, the State Department Spokesperson, "Hateful, dangerous and provocative actions such as these are never justified."
She also said, "We note that the Israeli Government has condemned this heinous attack and pledged to bring the perpetrators to justice. We look to Israeli law enforcement officials to do so expeditiously."
Nuland also condemned the rocket fire from Gaza into southern Israel, saying that "there is no justification for the targeting of innocent civilians and call on those responsible to take immediate action to stop these cowardly acts."
Nuland called on the two political parties to exercise restraint and stop the violence.
IDF Chief Gantz: Israeli Army Will Respond Harshly to any Coming Escalation
On Thursday, the 21st of June, IDF Chief, Benny Gantz, threatened that the Israeli army will respond harshly if any escalation of violence from within the Gaza Strip continued.
Gantz told settlers that if the security situation continued to worsen on the Southern borders then the army would be ready to respond to any Palestinian attempt to harm Israeli civilians and soldiers.
Gants made these statements during an address at a graduation ceremony for Israeli soldiers. He also talked about the necessity to recruit both settlers and civilians into the army, especially in a time when the State of Israel faces 'dangerous threats' to use his wording.
The Arab League Secretary General, Nabil al-Arabi, during a press conference held in Cairo, condemned Thursday the continuous bloody Israeli escalation against Gaza and criticized the international position towards that.
Al-Arabi told WAFA, regarding what is needed to deter the Israeli lawlessness, 'I hope one day we will find some kind of deterrence.”
“The international community and the United Nations Security Council are satisfied with international Quartet’s efforts and the quartet has not done anything significant to stop the Israeli policies, therefore I consider them a waste of time,” he said.
Al-Arabi told WAFA, regarding what is needed to deter the Israeli lawlessness, 'I hope one day we will find some kind of deterrence.”
“The international community and the United Nations Security Council are satisfied with international Quartet’s efforts and the quartet has not done anything significant to stop the Israeli policies, therefore I consider them a waste of time,” he said.
20 june 2012
On Tuesday, 19th June, Palestinian media sources reported that Israeli jets dropped warning leaflets over areas in Gaza district.
Eyewitnesses told PNN that the leaflets included requests from Israeli authorities to Gazans to report the locations of rocket launchers. One of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades survived an assassination attempt after a missile hit an area north of Gaza.
The Leaflet said in Arabic:
"Stay safe by following our orders."
"You can call the numbers listed below to inform us about the locations of rocket launchers, warehouses, tunnels and terrorist groups operating in your area," said the leaflet. "promising confidentiality."
Eyewitnesses told PNN that the leaflets included requests from Israeli authorities to Gazans to report the locations of rocket launchers. One of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades survived an assassination attempt after a missile hit an area north of Gaza.
The Leaflet said in Arabic:
"Stay safe by following our orders."
"You can call the numbers listed below to inform us about the locations of rocket launchers, warehouses, tunnels and terrorist groups operating in your area," said the leaflet. "promising confidentiality."
Three Palestinians were injured in the Gaza Strip early Wednesday as Israeli airstrikes continued across the coastal enclave.
Later Wednesday morning 17-year-old Yahya Hattab was injured by shrapnel, when Israeli forces fired artillery shells at Wadi al-Salqa, south of Deir al-Balah, medics said. An Israeli army spokeswoman said she was looking into the incident.
Overnight, Israeli jets struck a blacksmith workshop in the Zaitoun neighborhood of Gaza City, leaving one man moderately injured, witnesses said.
Nearby, an Israeli helicopter fired on a civilian vehicle near Ali Ibn Abu Talib Mosque. The driver narrowly escaped after his vehicle was damaged, a Ma'an reporter said.
Warplanes also fired on a group of Palestinian militants east of Gaza City. Two were injured and evacuated to hospital.
There were also raids on a military site in al-Sudaniyya, northwest of Gaza City, and an agricultural area in Rafah, south Gaza.
Residents said Wednesday morning that Israeli jets continued to hover over the Gaza Strip.
Israeli military tanks also fired several shells across the eastern borders of the Gaza Strip, witnesses said.
The Israeli army said it had had targeted seven sites in the Gaza Strip overnight, in response to rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said seven rockets were fired into Israel from the Gaza Strip overnight. Israeli news site Ynet said one projectile from Gaza landed in an open area near Negev city Beersheba.
The flare-up in violence comes after a Palestinian source told Reuters that the sides agreed to cease fire at 11 p.m. Tuesday at the behest of Egypt, which has mediated between the foes in the past. Israel had no immediate comment.
Israeli airstrikes killed four men in northern Gaza on Monday and two teenagers were killed by Israeli shelling on Tuesday morning.
An Israeli army spokesman told Ma'an that 25 rockets were fired into southern Israel on Tuesday.
The military wings of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Popular Resistance Committees said they had fired projectiles across the border on Tuesday in response to the barrage of Israeli attacks.
Hamas' armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, also fired rockets into Israel on Tuesday for the first time in over a year. For months, Hamas has stayed on the sidelines and discouraged smaller militant groups from firing rockets into Israel.
Newspapers Review: Israeli Air Attacks on Gaza Dominate Dailies
The Israeli air strikes against the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian retaliation targeting southern Israel dominated Wednesday’s issue of the three Palestinian Arabic dailies.
Al-Ayyam reported on the escalation in tension in Gaza with the Israeli airstrikes targeting several locations across the Strip and injuring several Palestinians. Meanwhile Palestinian fighters in Gaza launched missiles at southern Israel, injuring several Israelis amid expectations that the violence would continue for several days.
The daily printed a picture of Palestinian women mourning during the funeral of one of Palestinian victims of the Israeli airstrikes.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida said an unknown group called Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem claimed responsibility for the attack on the Israeli southern borders with Egypt that led to the current situation in Gaza. The group also claimed the two fighters that penetrated the Israeli borders were Egyptian and Saudi.
Al-Quds highlighted the arson of a mosque in Jaba’, a village northeast of Jerusalem, by Israeli settlers in a “price tag” attack to avenge Israeli government plans to evict settlers from Ulpana outpost built on private Palestinian land in the illegal settlement of Beit El near Ramallah.
The newspaper printed a photo of residents checking the damage caused to the mosque.
The prime headline in al-Hayat al-Jadida featured news from Egypt concerning the health of ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. It said his health was worsening and that he was unconscious and relying on life-support machines.
Al-Quds reported on a late-night Israeli army raid of Dheisheh refugee camp south of Bethlehem and the clashes that erupted between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers afterwards.
Later Wednesday morning 17-year-old Yahya Hattab was injured by shrapnel, when Israeli forces fired artillery shells at Wadi al-Salqa, south of Deir al-Balah, medics said. An Israeli army spokeswoman said she was looking into the incident.
Overnight, Israeli jets struck a blacksmith workshop in the Zaitoun neighborhood of Gaza City, leaving one man moderately injured, witnesses said.
Nearby, an Israeli helicopter fired on a civilian vehicle near Ali Ibn Abu Talib Mosque. The driver narrowly escaped after his vehicle was damaged, a Ma'an reporter said.
Warplanes also fired on a group of Palestinian militants east of Gaza City. Two were injured and evacuated to hospital.
There were also raids on a military site in al-Sudaniyya, northwest of Gaza City, and an agricultural area in Rafah, south Gaza.
Residents said Wednesday morning that Israeli jets continued to hover over the Gaza Strip.
Israeli military tanks also fired several shells across the eastern borders of the Gaza Strip, witnesses said.
The Israeli army said it had had targeted seven sites in the Gaza Strip overnight, in response to rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said seven rockets were fired into Israel from the Gaza Strip overnight. Israeli news site Ynet said one projectile from Gaza landed in an open area near Negev city Beersheba.
The flare-up in violence comes after a Palestinian source told Reuters that the sides agreed to cease fire at 11 p.m. Tuesday at the behest of Egypt, which has mediated between the foes in the past. Israel had no immediate comment.
Israeli airstrikes killed four men in northern Gaza on Monday and two teenagers were killed by Israeli shelling on Tuesday morning.
An Israeli army spokesman told Ma'an that 25 rockets were fired into southern Israel on Tuesday.
The military wings of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Popular Resistance Committees said they had fired projectiles across the border on Tuesday in response to the barrage of Israeli attacks.
Hamas' armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, also fired rockets into Israel on Tuesday for the first time in over a year. For months, Hamas has stayed on the sidelines and discouraged smaller militant groups from firing rockets into Israel.
Newspapers Review: Israeli Air Attacks on Gaza Dominate Dailies
The Israeli air strikes against the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian retaliation targeting southern Israel dominated Wednesday’s issue of the three Palestinian Arabic dailies.
Al-Ayyam reported on the escalation in tension in Gaza with the Israeli airstrikes targeting several locations across the Strip and injuring several Palestinians. Meanwhile Palestinian fighters in Gaza launched missiles at southern Israel, injuring several Israelis amid expectations that the violence would continue for several days.
The daily printed a picture of Palestinian women mourning during the funeral of one of Palestinian victims of the Israeli airstrikes.
Al-Hayat al-Jadida said an unknown group called Mujahideen Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem claimed responsibility for the attack on the Israeli southern borders with Egypt that led to the current situation in Gaza. The group also claimed the two fighters that penetrated the Israeli borders were Egyptian and Saudi.
Al-Quds highlighted the arson of a mosque in Jaba’, a village northeast of Jerusalem, by Israeli settlers in a “price tag” attack to avenge Israeli government plans to evict settlers from Ulpana outpost built on private Palestinian land in the illegal settlement of Beit El near Ramallah.
The newspaper printed a photo of residents checking the damage caused to the mosque.
The prime headline in al-Hayat al-Jadida featured news from Egypt concerning the health of ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. It said his health was worsening and that he was unconscious and relying on life-support machines.
Al-Quds reported on a late-night Israeli army raid of Dheisheh refugee camp south of Bethlehem and the clashes that erupted between Palestinians and Israeli soldiers afterwards.
Relatives of Ghalib Irmeilat mourn during his funeral in Rafah on June 20
One Palestinian was seriously injured and another received light injuries when an Israeli gunship Wednesday fired two missiles at a car parked outside a house in Zaytoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City, medics said.
The gunships fired the missiles at the car parked near a blacksmith shop in the neighborhood, said sources, causing the injures along with fire and damage to the buildings.
Israeli warplanes continued for the third day in a row airstrikes against several locations in the Gaza Strip causing severe damage to buildings and some injuries, but no fatalities, according to witnesses.
Warplanes fired three missiles at a location west of Zaytoun neighborhood leading to the destruction of the location and causing severe damage to properties.
Jets also fired a missile at a navy training base in the Sodanya area, northwest of Gaza. No injuries were reported.
The airstrikes started in revenge to a cross-border attack on the Egyptian-Israeli borders during which one Israeli civilian was killed. The two attackers, who turned out to be an Egyptian and a Saudi national according to a video tape distributed on Tuesday by an al-Qaeda affiliated group, were also killed in the attack.
Israel retaliated against the Gaza Strip killing at least six people and wounding many others. Armed Palestinian groups retaliated by firing dozens of missiles at Israeli cities bordering the Gaza Strip.
One Palestinian was seriously injured and another received light injuries when an Israeli gunship Wednesday fired two missiles at a car parked outside a house in Zaytoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City, medics said.
The gunships fired the missiles at the car parked near a blacksmith shop in the neighborhood, said sources, causing the injures along with fire and damage to the buildings.
Israeli warplanes continued for the third day in a row airstrikes against several locations in the Gaza Strip causing severe damage to buildings and some injuries, but no fatalities, according to witnesses.
Warplanes fired three missiles at a location west of Zaytoun neighborhood leading to the destruction of the location and causing severe damage to properties.
Jets also fired a missile at a navy training base in the Sodanya area, northwest of Gaza. No injuries were reported.
The airstrikes started in revenge to a cross-border attack on the Egyptian-Israeli borders during which one Israeli civilian was killed. The two attackers, who turned out to be an Egyptian and a Saudi national according to a video tape distributed on Tuesday by an al-Qaeda affiliated group, were also killed in the attack.
Israel retaliated against the Gaza Strip killing at least six people and wounding many others. Armed Palestinian groups retaliated by firing dozens of missiles at Israeli cities bordering the Gaza Strip.
Another Palestinian killed in Israeli airstrike in east Gaza
Ghalib Irmeilat, 21
Another Palestinian has been killed in a fresh Israeli airstrike in the east of the Gaza Strip, bringing to nine the number of Palestinians killed over the past three days.
Also earlier on Wednesady, an Israeli warplane targeted a Palestinian man, riding on a motorcycle, in southern Gaza 's Rafah on the border with Egypt, medics said, adding another person was also wounded.
Nine Palestinians, including two teenagers, have so far been killed and five others injured in a series of airstrikes carried out by Israeli warplanes against the 1.6 million people living in the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli regime’s military frequently bombs the Gaza Strip, claiming the actions are being conducted for defensive purposes. However, disproportionate force is always used, in violation of international law, and civilians are often killed or injured.
Gaza has been blockaded since 2007, causing a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.
Last week, fifty international aid groups and UN agencies urged the Israeli regime to open borders of Gaza, saying the blockade has harmed Gazans.
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BREAKING NEWS: ISRAEL GAZA ATTACK 9 people killed in three days of Israeli attacks on Gaza
Today another 2 shuhada of which one 13 year old child. Total of martyrs : 9
Israel escalates aggression, launches more airstrikes on Gaza
The Israeli regime resumed its aerial attacks on Tuesday evening on the Gaza Strip inflicting a number of casualties among Palestinian civilians and resistance fighters.
According to Quds Press, two air-to-ground missiles targeted a group of resistance fighters east of Azzeitoun neighborhood southeast of Gaza city without any reported injuries.
Another air raid was soon waged on an area east of Khan Younis leading to the injury of a Palestinian citizen.
An Israeli attack helicopter, which was spotted flying low in Gaza, bombed a Palestinian car inside a house in Azzeitoun neighborhood near the auto market and destroyed it.
The missile attack wounded a civilian who was passing by the house.
A similar attack bombed a room near a marine police center northwest of Gaza city without reported casualties.
Israel started its aerial and artillery attacks on Gaza on Monday killing since then seven Palestinians and wounding many others.
In retaliation to its war crimes, Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, launched counterattacks against Israeli targets on Tuesday.
Al-Qassam said in a press release that its rocket attack unit fired on Tuesday alone 43 rockets and missiles at Israeli targets in response to its military escalation and the killing of Palestinians.
In a related incident, Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper stated a Palestinian rocket attack on an Israeli military building in the western Negev led to the injury of four Israeli soldiers, one of them in a serious condition.
Three other Israelis reportedly sustained serious injuries when another rocket fell on a building in the vicinity of the regional council Hof Ashkelon.
Another Palestinian has been killed in a fresh Israeli airstrike in the east of the Gaza Strip, bringing to nine the number of Palestinians killed over the past three days.
Also earlier on Wednesady, an Israeli warplane targeted a Palestinian man, riding on a motorcycle, in southern Gaza 's Rafah on the border with Egypt, medics said, adding another person was also wounded.
Nine Palestinians, including two teenagers, have so far been killed and five others injured in a series of airstrikes carried out by Israeli warplanes against the 1.6 million people living in the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli regime’s military frequently bombs the Gaza Strip, claiming the actions are being conducted for defensive purposes. However, disproportionate force is always used, in violation of international law, and civilians are often killed or injured.
Gaza has been blockaded since 2007, causing a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.
Last week, fifty international aid groups and UN agencies urged the Israeli regime to open borders of Gaza, saying the blockade has harmed Gazans.
________________
BREAKING NEWS: ISRAEL GAZA ATTACK 9 people killed in three days of Israeli attacks on Gaza
Today another 2 shuhada of which one 13 year old child. Total of martyrs : 9
Israel escalates aggression, launches more airstrikes on Gaza
The Israeli regime resumed its aerial attacks on Tuesday evening on the Gaza Strip inflicting a number of casualties among Palestinian civilians and resistance fighters.
According to Quds Press, two air-to-ground missiles targeted a group of resistance fighters east of Azzeitoun neighborhood southeast of Gaza city without any reported injuries.
Another air raid was soon waged on an area east of Khan Younis leading to the injury of a Palestinian citizen.
An Israeli attack helicopter, which was spotted flying low in Gaza, bombed a Palestinian car inside a house in Azzeitoun neighborhood near the auto market and destroyed it.
The missile attack wounded a civilian who was passing by the house.
A similar attack bombed a room near a marine police center northwest of Gaza city without reported casualties.
Israel started its aerial and artillery attacks on Gaza on Monday killing since then seven Palestinians and wounding many others.
In retaliation to its war crimes, Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, launched counterattacks against Israeli targets on Tuesday.
Al-Qassam said in a press release that its rocket attack unit fired on Tuesday alone 43 rockets and missiles at Israeli targets in response to its military escalation and the killing of Palestinians.
In a related incident, Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper stated a Palestinian rocket attack on an Israeli military building in the western Negev led to the injury of four Israeli soldiers, one of them in a serious condition.
Three other Israelis reportedly sustained serious injuries when another rocket fell on a building in the vicinity of the regional council Hof Ashkelon.
Israeli raid kills Palestinian child, seriously wounds his father
Momen Al-Adam 14
A Palestinian child was killed and his father and a neighbor were seriously injured in an Israeli air raid on Gaza city afternoon Wednesday.
Local sources said that an Israeli reconnaissance plane fired two missiles at a field in Zaitun suburb, south west of Gaza city, killing the 14-year-old child Momen Al-Adam.
Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra, a spokesman for the health ministry, said that Momen’s father and a neighbor, who was in the field at the time of the raid, were seriously injured.
He said that the casualties of the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Strip, which started on Monday, had thus reached nine martyrs and 19 injured.
For their part, Palestinian resistance factions fired a number of rockets at Israeli targets near to the Gaza Strip in retaliation to the Israeli attacks.
Ministry: Boy killed as Israel bombs Gaza City
A 14-year-old boy was killed Wednesday afternoon as Israel bombed Gaza City in the third day of strikes on the enclave, Gaza's health ministry said.
Momen al-Adam was killed and two people were injured, including Momen's father, in the strike east of the Zaitoun neighborhood, ministry spokesman Ashraf Al-Qidra said.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said Israeli forces had hit the area.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli warplanes targeted a group of civilians.
Israel has killed eight Palestinians in Gaza in a series of airstrikes and tank shelling since Sunday evening. Al-Qidra said 17 were injured in the attacks.
Militants have responded to the attacks by firing a barrage of rockets across the border into southern Israel.
Around noon Wednesday a 21-year-old man was killed in an airstrike on Rafah in southern Gaza. The army said in a statement that he was involved in a raid from Egypt's Sinai on the Israeli border on Monday.
Israeli airstrikes killed four men in northern Gaza on Monday and two teenagers were killed by Israeli shelling on Tuesday morning.
A Palestinian child was killed and his father and a neighbor were seriously injured in an Israeli air raid on Gaza city afternoon Wednesday.
Local sources said that an Israeli reconnaissance plane fired two missiles at a field in Zaitun suburb, south west of Gaza city, killing the 14-year-old child Momen Al-Adam.
Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra, a spokesman for the health ministry, said that Momen’s father and a neighbor, who was in the field at the time of the raid, were seriously injured.
He said that the casualties of the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Strip, which started on Monday, had thus reached nine martyrs and 19 injured.
For their part, Palestinian resistance factions fired a number of rockets at Israeli targets near to the Gaza Strip in retaliation to the Israeli attacks.
Ministry: Boy killed as Israel bombs Gaza City
A 14-year-old boy was killed Wednesday afternoon as Israel bombed Gaza City in the third day of strikes on the enclave, Gaza's health ministry said.
Momen al-Adam was killed and two people were injured, including Momen's father, in the strike east of the Zaitoun neighborhood, ministry spokesman Ashraf Al-Qidra said.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said Israeli forces had hit the area.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli warplanes targeted a group of civilians.
Israel has killed eight Palestinians in Gaza in a series of airstrikes and tank shelling since Sunday evening. Al-Qidra said 17 were injured in the attacks.
Militants have responded to the attacks by firing a barrage of rockets across the border into southern Israel.
Around noon Wednesday a 21-year-old man was killed in an airstrike on Rafah in southern Gaza. The army said in a statement that he was involved in a raid from Egypt's Sinai on the Israeli border on Monday.
Israeli airstrikes killed four men in northern Gaza on Monday and two teenagers were killed by Israeli shelling on Tuesday morning.
Four Palestinians wounded in Israeli evening raids including two children
Four Palestinian citizens were wounded in new Israeli air raids on northern and central Gaza Strip on Wednesday evening.
Local sources told the PIC reporter that the Israeli raids bombed Jabalia, north of the Strip, and injured four citizens including two children.
Other warplanes blasted targets in Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza but no casualties were reported.
Envoy: Egypt working to calm Gaza fighting
The Egyptian ambassador to the Palestinian Authority said Wednesday that Egypt is working to restore calm to the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip.
Since Monday, Israeli airstrikes have killed seven Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and Gaza brigades, including Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades, have fired a barrage of rockets into Israel.
Amb. Yasser Othman said Egyptian authorities are in contact with all parties in order to quell the fighting.
Egypt is calling on Israel to stop attacks on Gaza in order for Palestinian factions to also halt fire, he said.
A Palestinian source told Reuters that the sides agreed to cease fire at 11 p.m. Tuesday at the behest of Egypt, but overnight Tuesday Israel launched seven airstrikes on the coastal enclave, and seven rockets were fired into southern Israel, the army said.
Israel bombs Hamas military sites in Gaza
Israel bombed two sites used by Hamas' military wing in Gaza on Wednesday evening.
Israeli airstrikes hit sites in Nuseirat and east of Jabalia used by the Al-Qassam Brigades, a Ma'an reporter said.
Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said two children were lightly injured in the attack near Jabalia.
The Israeli military said it hit two "terror sites" in the northern Gaza Strip in response to cross-border rocket fire.
Israel has killed eight Palestinians in Gaza since Monday in a series of airstrikes and tank shelling, including at least three teenagers as well as two Hamas militants.
The Al-Qassam Brigades says it has fired dozens of rockets and mortars at Israeli military targets since Tuesday in response to "the ongoing aggression against Palestinian people."
The barrage of rockets was the first fire from Hamas' brigades in over a year. In the past Hamas has discouraged smaller militant groups from firing at Israel.
Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said Tuesday that Israel's attacks prompted the group's military wing "to take a firm stance" and launch rockets.
Several other brigades have said they launched rockets into southern Israel since Monday, including the armed wings of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Popular Resistance Committees.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said around 80 rockets have been fired across the Gaza border since Monday.
Israel's army chief Benny Gantz said Wednesday that the Israeli army was prepared to respond "to any threat, at any time."
Local sources told the PIC reporter that the Israeli raids bombed Jabalia, north of the Strip, and injured four citizens including two children.
Other warplanes blasted targets in Nusseirat refugee camp in central Gaza but no casualties were reported.
Envoy: Egypt working to calm Gaza fighting
The Egyptian ambassador to the Palestinian Authority said Wednesday that Egypt is working to restore calm to the border between Israel and the Gaza Strip.
Since Monday, Israeli airstrikes have killed seven Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, and Gaza brigades, including Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades, have fired a barrage of rockets into Israel.
Amb. Yasser Othman said Egyptian authorities are in contact with all parties in order to quell the fighting.
Egypt is calling on Israel to stop attacks on Gaza in order for Palestinian factions to also halt fire, he said.
A Palestinian source told Reuters that the sides agreed to cease fire at 11 p.m. Tuesday at the behest of Egypt, but overnight Tuesday Israel launched seven airstrikes on the coastal enclave, and seven rockets were fired into southern Israel, the army said.
Israel bombs Hamas military sites in Gaza
Israel bombed two sites used by Hamas' military wing in Gaza on Wednesday evening.
Israeli airstrikes hit sites in Nuseirat and east of Jabalia used by the Al-Qassam Brigades, a Ma'an reporter said.
Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said two children were lightly injured in the attack near Jabalia.
The Israeli military said it hit two "terror sites" in the northern Gaza Strip in response to cross-border rocket fire.
Israel has killed eight Palestinians in Gaza since Monday in a series of airstrikes and tank shelling, including at least three teenagers as well as two Hamas militants.
The Al-Qassam Brigades says it has fired dozens of rockets and mortars at Israeli military targets since Tuesday in response to "the ongoing aggression against Palestinian people."
The barrage of rockets was the first fire from Hamas' brigades in over a year. In the past Hamas has discouraged smaller militant groups from firing at Israel.
Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said Tuesday that Israel's attacks prompted the group's military wing "to take a firm stance" and launch rockets.
Several other brigades have said they launched rockets into southern Israel since Monday, including the armed wings of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Popular Resistance Committees.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said around 80 rockets have been fired across the Gaza border since Monday.
Israel's army chief Benny Gantz said Wednesday that the Israeli army was prepared to respond "to any threat, at any time."
19 june 2012
Two-year old toddler killed in Israeli airstrike
A two-year old toddler was killed and her brother was wounded in an Israeli occupation airstrike on Gaza on Thursday evening, bringing the number of Palestinians killed in the latest Israeli onslaught on Gaza to seven.
Spokesman for the Ambulance and Emergency services in Gaza, Adham Abu Selmeyya, said that Hadeel Haddad was killed and her brother was moderately wounded in an Israeli occupation airstrike on the Zaitoun suburb east of Gaza City.
Six other Palestinians, including two children, were killed in a number of Israeli occupation airstrikes since Monday. Ten others were wounded in the attacks.
The Qassam Brigades responded to the Israeli occupation attacks by firing rockets at occupation military bases wounding four IOF soldiers.
The Israeli occupation air force late Tuesday night renewed strikes on the Gaza Strip wounding two people.
Toddler killed in Gaza explosion
A Palestinian toddler was killed Tuesday evening in an explosion south of Gaza City, medics said.
Emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Salmiya said in a statement that Hadil al-Haddad, 2, was killed and her brother was injured in the Zaitoun neighborhood of Gaza City.
A Hamas medical official told Reuters the cause of the child's death was not clear. Witnesses said she was killed when militants launched a rocket close by.
An Israeli military spokesman told Ma'an the army had not attacked that area. He said the army's initial investigation suggested al-Haddad's death was caused by a failed rocket launch by Palestinian militants.
Israeli airstrikes killed four men in northern Gaza on Monday and two teenagers were killed by Israeli shelling on Tuesday morning. Israel's army said the attacks were in response to rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
An Israeli army spokesman told Ma'an that 25 rockets were fired into southern Israel on Tuesday.
The military wings of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Popular Resistance Committees said they had fired projectiles across the border on Tuesday in response to the barrage of Israeli attacks.
"If the enemy does not stop its crimes, the resistance will respond with all available defense means," the PRC's Nasser Salah ad-Din Brigades said in a statement.
Hamas' armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, also fired rockets into Israel on Tuesday for the first time in over a year. For months, Hamas has stayed on the sidelines and discouraged smaller militant groups from firing rockets into Israel.
Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said Israel's attacks prompted the group's military wing "to take a firm stance" and launch rockets.
Although Hamas usually holds its fire under an unofficial truce, Israel says it holds the ruling party responsible for any attacks from the Gaza Strip.
Ground operation
Israeli cabinet minister Silvan Shalom on Tuesday raised the prospect of a ground operation in Gaza.
"The more things deteriorate, the closer we come to a decision we don't want to make," Shalom told Israel Radio. "The prospect of a ground operation shouldn't frighten us."
"If this situation escalates, and I hope it won't, then all options are open. They know it. We know it. The international community knows it," Shalom added.
On Monday militants who crossed into Israel from Egypt's Sinai desert fired on Israelis building a barrier on that frontier, killing one worker. Soldiers shot dead two of the infiltrators.
In a video recording obtained by Reuters in Gaza, a group of masked men claimed responsibility for the Sinai incident on behalf of what they said was a newly formed Islamic movement, the "Shura Council of Mujahideen in the Holy Land".
The masked men used Islamic slogans, pledging to liberate the Holy Land from what they termed Jewish control.
A second video showed two men, one of whom said they were about to embark on a mission to attack "the Zionist forces on the border of Egypt and occupied Palestine", an apparent reference to Monday's incident on the Sinai border.
The first man said he was an Egyptian named Abu Salah al-Masri. The other said he came from Saudi Arabia and gave his name as Abu Huthiyfa al-Rathali. The videos could not immediately be verified.
Spokesman for the Ambulance and Emergency services in Gaza, Adham Abu Selmeyya, said that Hadeel Haddad was killed and her brother was moderately wounded in an Israeli occupation airstrike on the Zaitoun suburb east of Gaza City.
Six other Palestinians, including two children, were killed in a number of Israeli occupation airstrikes since Monday. Ten others were wounded in the attacks.
The Qassam Brigades responded to the Israeli occupation attacks by firing rockets at occupation military bases wounding four IOF soldiers.
The Israeli occupation air force late Tuesday night renewed strikes on the Gaza Strip wounding two people.
Toddler killed in Gaza explosion
A Palestinian toddler was killed Tuesday evening in an explosion south of Gaza City, medics said.
Emergency services spokesman Adham Abu Salmiya said in a statement that Hadil al-Haddad, 2, was killed and her brother was injured in the Zaitoun neighborhood of Gaza City.
A Hamas medical official told Reuters the cause of the child's death was not clear. Witnesses said she was killed when militants launched a rocket close by.
An Israeli military spokesman told Ma'an the army had not attacked that area. He said the army's initial investigation suggested al-Haddad's death was caused by a failed rocket launch by Palestinian militants.
Israeli airstrikes killed four men in northern Gaza on Monday and two teenagers were killed by Israeli shelling on Tuesday morning. Israel's army said the attacks were in response to rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
An Israeli army spokesman told Ma'an that 25 rockets were fired into southern Israel on Tuesday.
The military wings of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the Popular Resistance Committees said they had fired projectiles across the border on Tuesday in response to the barrage of Israeli attacks.
"If the enemy does not stop its crimes, the resistance will respond with all available defense means," the PRC's Nasser Salah ad-Din Brigades said in a statement.
Hamas' armed wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, also fired rockets into Israel on Tuesday for the first time in over a year. For months, Hamas has stayed on the sidelines and discouraged smaller militant groups from firing rockets into Israel.
Fawzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said Israel's attacks prompted the group's military wing "to take a firm stance" and launch rockets.
Although Hamas usually holds its fire under an unofficial truce, Israel says it holds the ruling party responsible for any attacks from the Gaza Strip.
Ground operation
Israeli cabinet minister Silvan Shalom on Tuesday raised the prospect of a ground operation in Gaza.
"The more things deteriorate, the closer we come to a decision we don't want to make," Shalom told Israel Radio. "The prospect of a ground operation shouldn't frighten us."
"If this situation escalates, and I hope it won't, then all options are open. They know it. We know it. The international community knows it," Shalom added.
On Monday militants who crossed into Israel from Egypt's Sinai desert fired on Israelis building a barrier on that frontier, killing one worker. Soldiers shot dead two of the infiltrators.
In a video recording obtained by Reuters in Gaza, a group of masked men claimed responsibility for the Sinai incident on behalf of what they said was a newly formed Islamic movement, the "Shura Council of Mujahideen in the Holy Land".
The masked men used Islamic slogans, pledging to liberate the Holy Land from what they termed Jewish control.
A second video showed two men, one of whom said they were about to embark on a mission to attack "the Zionist forces on the border of Egypt and occupied Palestine", an apparent reference to Monday's incident on the Sinai border.
The first man said he was an Egyptian named Abu Salah al-Masri. The other said he came from Saudi Arabia and gave his name as Abu Huthiyfa al-Rathali. The videos could not immediately be verified.
Israeli air strikes kill 6 Palestinians following attack on border construction site
Israeli air strikes have killed six Palestinians in Gaza during the past 24 hours following an attack on an Israeli border fence construction site that left one worker dead, medical officials in Gaza said Tuesday.
Violence appeared to be escalating between the two sides as the armed wing of Hamas said it had shelled an Israeli base Tuesday.
Four Palestinians were killed in Beit Hanoun, a city in northern Gaza, and two more early Tuesday east of central Gaza City, the medical officials said.
A spokesman for the Israeli Defense Force said Tuesday that the Israel Air Force had carried out a strike around midnight on a group of men he said were laying explosives near the security fence in central Gaza.
On Monday, the IDF said the air force had scored a direct hit on "a terrorist squad attempting to fire a rocket at Israel from the northern Gaza Strip."
Meanwhile, the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, said Tuesday it had shelled an Israeli military base near the border with Gaza.
The group said in a statement that the attack was in response to the death of one of its members in the air strike on Beit Hanoun.
The IDF spokesman said three rockets had landed inside Israel on Tuesday, but he could not confirm whether they hit an army base.
Violence appeared to be escalating between the two sides as the armed wing of Hamas said it had shelled an Israeli base Tuesday.
Four Palestinians were killed in Beit Hanoun, a city in northern Gaza, and two more early Tuesday east of central Gaza City, the medical officials said.
A spokesman for the Israeli Defense Force said Tuesday that the Israel Air Force had carried out a strike around midnight on a group of men he said were laying explosives near the security fence in central Gaza.
On Monday, the IDF said the air force had scored a direct hit on "a terrorist squad attempting to fire a rocket at Israel from the northern Gaza Strip."
Meanwhile, the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, said Tuesday it had shelled an Israeli military base near the border with Gaza.
The group said in a statement that the attack was in response to the death of one of its members in the air strike on Beit Hanoun.
The IDF spokesman said three rockets had landed inside Israel on Tuesday, but he could not confirm whether they hit an army base.
A relative of 16-year-old Muhammad Bassam Abu Mueliq reacts after his body was recovered in Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip on June
Two teenagers were killed in an Israeli operation in the central Gaza Strip overnight Monday, medics told Ma'an.
Israel's army said warplanes "targeted a terrorist squad identified handling an explosive device near the security fence," adding that a hit was identified.
Locals told Ma'an that Israeli tanks entered Gaza south of al-Maghazi refugee camp and fired on Palestinians. Red Crescent teams evacuated the bodies of two teenagers on Tuesday morning, after a two-hour search operation.
Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra identified the victims as Muhammad Bassam Abu Mueliq and Yousif Talbani, both aged 16. Al-Qidra said that their bodies were riddled with bullets.
Meanwhile, Hamas' military wing claimed responsibility for firing four rockets at an Israeli military base in Zikim, north of Gaza. An Israeli military spokesman said three rockets hit the Hof Ashkelon regional council, without causing damage or injuries.
A Hamas statement said the fire was in response to Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip in Monday which killed two Islamic Jihad militants and two others affiliated to Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades.
The death of two teenagers overnight Monday brought the death toll on the Gaza borders to six in 24 hours.
Israel bombed a street east of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza on Monday evening, saying it had targeted a terrorist squad attempting to fire a rocket from the northern Gaza Strip. The Al-Qassam Brigades identified the casualties as Jihad Abu Shabab and Abdullah Zaanin.
Earlier on Monday, Israeli military forces shelled the same area, killing two men riding a motorcycle in a field, and injuring four others.
Islamic Jihad's military wing said the two men were en route to take part in a militant operation after Israeli troops entered the Gaza Strip.
Two Palestinians Killed In Renewed Bombardment In Beit Hanoun
Palestinian medical sources reported that two Palestinians were killed, on Monday evening, and at least three others were wounded, one seriously, when the Israeli army bombarded As-Sikka Street, in Beit Hanoun city, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. On Monday at noon, two Palestinians were killed when the army bombarded in Beit Hanoun.
The sources stated that Jihad Abu Shabab, 24, and Abdul-Rahman Hasan Az-Za’aneen, 23, where killed when the army fired two missiles at a group of resident in Beit Hanoun.
The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, reported that Abu Shabab is one of its fighters from Beit Hanoun.
The Brigades vowed fierce retaliation, and stated that “armed resistance against the Israeli occupation is the path of its fighters who will continue to resist the occupation”.
The latest Israeli military attack brings the death toll on Monday to four as, on Monday at noon, the army fired missiles at motorcycle riders in Beit Hanoun killing Mohammad Abu Shabab, 24, and Ismail Abu Odah, 24; several residents were injured.
The Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad, reported that two of its fighters were killed, Monday, after the Israeli army fired missile at them, in Beit Hanoun, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Several residents were wounded in the attack.
The Brigades issued a press identifying the slain fighters as Mohammad Rafeeq Shabab, 24, and Ismail Mohammad Abu Odah, 21.
It vowed retaliation, and added that armed resistance against the Israeli occupation “is the language Israel understands and the most suitable method to liberate Palestine”.
Adham Abu Salmiyya, spokesperson of the Medical and Emergency Services in Gaza, said that the attack targeted a motorcycle driving near an agricultural school in Beit Hanoun.
Earlier on Monday morning, three Palestinians and one Israeli were killed during clashes that took place along the Egyptian border with Israel.
The army stated that a Palestinian armed group, on the Egyptian side of the border, fired an RPG at the army before engaging in an automatic fire attack.
On Sunday evening, the Israeli Air Force bombarded a blacksmith workshop in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, leading to extensive damage and at least five injuries, including one child, according to medical sources in Gaza.
On Sunday night at midnight, the Israeli Navy attacked a Palestinian fishing boat, in Palestinian territorial waters in Gaza, and kidnapped four fishermen.
Also on Sunday, the army bombarded an area reported to be a "training center" for the Al-Qassam Brigades of Hamas, in Az-Zeitoun neighborhood in Gaza City.
Furthermore, two Palestinians were shot and killed, and one was wounded, after an Israeli settler, opened fire at them near As-Sammoa’ town, in the southern West Bank district of Hebron.
IDF hits terror cell near Gaza fence
Tensions rising in south: Air Force fires at Palestinians as they attempt to plant explosive device near Gaza fence early Tuesday; army killed four terrorists in two separate airstrikes earlier.
Gaza escalation in cards? Air Force aircraft fired at a Palestinian terror cell early Tuesday as its members were attempting to plant an explosive device near the central Gaza Strip border fence.
The army said the attack target was hit. Palestinian sources later confirmed that the strike left casualties on the Palestinian side; no further details were provided.
“The IDF will not tolerate any bid to harm the State of Israel’s citizens and IDF soldiers and will continue to operate against any element that utilizes terror against the State of Israel,” the military said following the strike. “The Hamas terror group is the address and it bears the responsibility.”
The latest attack marked the third Israeli airstrike in the Strip in the past 24 hours.
Rocket cell hit
Earlier, the Air Force struck a terror cell as it prepared to fire rockets at Israel; two terrorists were killed in that strike, including a member of Hamas’ military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades. The strike was carried out after a rocket exploded in southern Israel, causing no injuries.
Another rocket was fired from Gaza following the strike and exploded in an open area in the town of Sderot; no injuries were reported.
Also Monday, the Air Force killed two terrorists belonging to the Islamic Jihad’s military wing in a midday strike.
Army officials said that Gaza strikes were not connected to the terror attack on the Egypt border Monday morning that left one Israeli laborer working on the border fence construction project dead.
Two teenagers were killed in an Israeli operation in the central Gaza Strip overnight Monday, medics told Ma'an.
Israel's army said warplanes "targeted a terrorist squad identified handling an explosive device near the security fence," adding that a hit was identified.
Locals told Ma'an that Israeli tanks entered Gaza south of al-Maghazi refugee camp and fired on Palestinians. Red Crescent teams evacuated the bodies of two teenagers on Tuesday morning, after a two-hour search operation.
Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra identified the victims as Muhammad Bassam Abu Mueliq and Yousif Talbani, both aged 16. Al-Qidra said that their bodies were riddled with bullets.
Meanwhile, Hamas' military wing claimed responsibility for firing four rockets at an Israeli military base in Zikim, north of Gaza. An Israeli military spokesman said three rockets hit the Hof Ashkelon regional council, without causing damage or injuries.
A Hamas statement said the fire was in response to Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip in Monday which killed two Islamic Jihad militants and two others affiliated to Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades.
The death of two teenagers overnight Monday brought the death toll on the Gaza borders to six in 24 hours.
Israel bombed a street east of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza on Monday evening, saying it had targeted a terrorist squad attempting to fire a rocket from the northern Gaza Strip. The Al-Qassam Brigades identified the casualties as Jihad Abu Shabab and Abdullah Zaanin.
Earlier on Monday, Israeli military forces shelled the same area, killing two men riding a motorcycle in a field, and injuring four others.
Islamic Jihad's military wing said the two men were en route to take part in a militant operation after Israeli troops entered the Gaza Strip.
Two Palestinians Killed In Renewed Bombardment In Beit Hanoun
Palestinian medical sources reported that two Palestinians were killed, on Monday evening, and at least three others were wounded, one seriously, when the Israeli army bombarded As-Sikka Street, in Beit Hanoun city, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. On Monday at noon, two Palestinians were killed when the army bombarded in Beit Hanoun.
The sources stated that Jihad Abu Shabab, 24, and Abdul-Rahman Hasan Az-Za’aneen, 23, where killed when the army fired two missiles at a group of resident in Beit Hanoun.
The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement, reported that Abu Shabab is one of its fighters from Beit Hanoun.
The Brigades vowed fierce retaliation, and stated that “armed resistance against the Israeli occupation is the path of its fighters who will continue to resist the occupation”.
The latest Israeli military attack brings the death toll on Monday to four as, on Monday at noon, the army fired missiles at motorcycle riders in Beit Hanoun killing Mohammad Abu Shabab, 24, and Ismail Abu Odah, 24; several residents were injured.
The Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Islamic Jihad, reported that two of its fighters were killed, Monday, after the Israeli army fired missile at them, in Beit Hanoun, in the northern part of the Gaza Strip. Several residents were wounded in the attack.
The Brigades issued a press identifying the slain fighters as Mohammad Rafeeq Shabab, 24, and Ismail Mohammad Abu Odah, 21.
It vowed retaliation, and added that armed resistance against the Israeli occupation “is the language Israel understands and the most suitable method to liberate Palestine”.
Adham Abu Salmiyya, spokesperson of the Medical and Emergency Services in Gaza, said that the attack targeted a motorcycle driving near an agricultural school in Beit Hanoun.
Earlier on Monday morning, three Palestinians and one Israeli were killed during clashes that took place along the Egyptian border with Israel.
The army stated that a Palestinian armed group, on the Egyptian side of the border, fired an RPG at the army before engaging in an automatic fire attack.
On Sunday evening, the Israeli Air Force bombarded a blacksmith workshop in Rafah, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip, leading to extensive damage and at least five injuries, including one child, according to medical sources in Gaza.
On Sunday night at midnight, the Israeli Navy attacked a Palestinian fishing boat, in Palestinian territorial waters in Gaza, and kidnapped four fishermen.
Also on Sunday, the army bombarded an area reported to be a "training center" for the Al-Qassam Brigades of Hamas, in Az-Zeitoun neighborhood in Gaza City.
Furthermore, two Palestinians were shot and killed, and one was wounded, after an Israeli settler, opened fire at them near As-Sammoa’ town, in the southern West Bank district of Hebron.
IDF hits terror cell near Gaza fence
Tensions rising in south: Air Force fires at Palestinians as they attempt to plant explosive device near Gaza fence early Tuesday; army killed four terrorists in two separate airstrikes earlier.
Gaza escalation in cards? Air Force aircraft fired at a Palestinian terror cell early Tuesday as its members were attempting to plant an explosive device near the central Gaza Strip border fence.
The army said the attack target was hit. Palestinian sources later confirmed that the strike left casualties on the Palestinian side; no further details were provided.
“The IDF will not tolerate any bid to harm the State of Israel’s citizens and IDF soldiers and will continue to operate against any element that utilizes terror against the State of Israel,” the military said following the strike. “The Hamas terror group is the address and it bears the responsibility.”
The latest attack marked the third Israeli airstrike in the Strip in the past 24 hours.
Rocket cell hit
Earlier, the Air Force struck a terror cell as it prepared to fire rockets at Israel; two terrorists were killed in that strike, including a member of Hamas’ military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades. The strike was carried out after a rocket exploded in southern Israel, causing no injuries.
Another rocket was fired from Gaza following the strike and exploded in an open area in the town of Sderot; no injuries were reported.
Also Monday, the Air Force killed two terrorists belonging to the Islamic Jihad’s military wing in a midday strike.
Army officials said that Gaza strikes were not connected to the terror attack on the Egypt border Monday morning that left one Israeli laborer working on the border fence construction project dead.
Israeli F-16 warplane Tuesday targeted an agricultural area in Deir al-Balah, in central Gaza, according to witnesses.
They said the plane’s bombing caused serious material damage in the area and no casualties reported.
They said the plane’s bombing caused serious material damage in the area and no casualties reported.
Israeli war planes shelled the central Gaza Strip on Tuesday afternoon, injuring one person, medics said.
The casualty, who was not identified, was traveling by motorcycle on Salah al-Din road when he was hit by a shell, witnesses told Ma'an. Doctors said he was evacuated to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
The Israeli army said the strike "targeted a terrorist squad in the central Gaza Strip ... (that) was responsible for the rockets fired at Israel over the past few hours."
Meanwhile the military wing of Hamas said it had fired 10 rockets towards Israeli community Raim near the Gaza border. An Israeli military spokesman said eight projectiles landed in the Eshkol region, without causing damage or injuries.
Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades had earlier said it fired four rockets overnight, and the military said three landed in Israel. The brigades said the fire was in response to Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip in Monday which killed two of its affiliates and two Islamic Jihad militants.
Two 16-year-old Palestinians were killed in an Israeli operation overnight Monday, bringing the death toll on the Gaza borders to six in 24 hours.
The casualty, who was not identified, was traveling by motorcycle on Salah al-Din road when he was hit by a shell, witnesses told Ma'an. Doctors said he was evacuated to Shifa Hospital in Gaza City.
The Israeli army said the strike "targeted a terrorist squad in the central Gaza Strip ... (that) was responsible for the rockets fired at Israel over the past few hours."
Meanwhile the military wing of Hamas said it had fired 10 rockets towards Israeli community Raim near the Gaza border. An Israeli military spokesman said eight projectiles landed in the Eshkol region, without causing damage or injuries.
Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades had earlier said it fired four rockets overnight, and the military said three landed in Israel. The brigades said the fire was in response to Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip in Monday which killed two of its affiliates and two Islamic Jihad militants.
Two 16-year-old Palestinians were killed in an Israeli operation overnight Monday, bringing the death toll on the Gaza borders to six in 24 hours.
IOF soldiers shoot, detain workers in central Gaza
Israeli occupation forces (IOF) fired at a number of Palestinian workers while trying to approach the central Gaza border fence on Tuesday, local sources said.
They said that the soldiers opened machinegun fire at a group of Palestinians while trying to approach the border fence near Maghazi refugee camp and wounded them.
The soldiers then evacuated the injured workers to an Israeli military outpost.
They said that the soldiers opened machinegun fire at a group of Palestinians while trying to approach the border fence near Maghazi refugee camp and wounded them.
The soldiers then evacuated the injured workers to an Israeli military outpost.
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