Israeli air strike kills Palestinian in Gaza

30/12/2011| IslamWeb

At least one Palestinian has been killed and another five injured by an Israeli air strike east of Gaza City, Palestinian medical officials have said.

Hamas officials confirmed that Moamen Abu Daff was killed on Friday morning when a missile hit the city's Zeitoun neighborhood.

Abu Daff was reportedly a member of Army of Islam.

Palestinian fighters had fired two rockets at southern Israel on Thursday, after Israeli warplanes attacked the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army said.

Both fell in open ground without causing injuries or damage.

The army said in a statement that the attack was a response to five rockets that landed in Israel, none of which caused any damage or injuries.

'Additional campaign'

An earlier series of Israeli strikes overnight on Tuesday had killed a Palestinian and wounded about 20 others, as the army struck what it described as "targets who were planning cross-border attacks on southern Israel from the Egyptian Sinai".

On Wednesday, a senior Israeli officer said the military was preparing for a possible large-scale military campaign in Gaza if the Palestinians did not halt their rocket attacks.

"We are preparing and ready for an additional campaign ... to renew the deterrence," Tal Hermoni, commander of the Gaza division's southern brigade, told reporters in remarks widely published in the Israeli media.

Israel's last major war against Gaza was Operation Cast Lead, a 22-day offensive launched on December 27, 2008 that cost the lives of more than 1,400 Palestinians.

PHOTO CAPTION

Palestinian mourners carry the body of Moamen abu-Daff.

Al-Jazeera