Gaza: Israeli fire kills four more
Three of the victims were Hamas militants. Once again, the military operations struck Beit Hanun, which is bearing the brunt of the "Autumn Clouds" operation. In Gaza Strip, 39 people have been killed in four days of clashes. Abu Mazen has urged the international community to "intervene immediately".
Gaza (AsiaNews/Agencies) There is no letup in violence in the Gaza Strip where Israeli forces today killed four Palestinians, including three Hamas militants. Thus continues the Israeli operation in the strip, aimed at stopping the persistent firing of rockets from there into its territory. Palestinian sources said 39 people have been killed in four days of clashes. The tragic situation yesterday prompted the President of the PA, Abu Mazen, to launch an official appeal to the international community to intervene "immediately to stop the Israeli aggression in Gaza Strip."
Luaye al-Burnu, a local commander for the armed wing of Hamas, was killed in an air raid this morning. Two people were killed in the northern town of Beit Hanun, which has borne the brunt of the operation since it started on 1 November. Marwan Abu Harbid, 46, was killed in his house while a Hamas militant, Ibrahim al-Bassiuni, 18, was killed by special forces fire. Eye witnesses said anti-tank rockets were fired on the Jerusalem army but it is not clear whether any Israeli soldiers were wounded.
In nearby Jabaliya, five members of the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades were wounded by artillery fire: one of them, 30-year-old Raed Siam, succumbed to his injuries later in hospital.
Today's violence follows one of the bloodiest days in the area in weeks. Yesterday, in Beit Hanun, Tsahal soldiers killed at least 19 people in a series of strikes. The worst attack took place outside the al Nasser mosque: 17 people were killed, including many civilians. Among them were two women who acted as human shields to protect a group of militants from Israeli soldiers. The militants were hiding in the place of worship. The Israeli army said it fired only on armed men and that it fatally wounded just one woman.
The "Autumn Clouds" operation has claimed 39 victims so far, including 19 militants and one Israeli soldier. According to figures supplied by Agence France Press, today's deaths bring to 5,503 the number of people killed since the start of the second Palestinian Intifada in 2000, the vast majority of them Palestinians.
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