GAZA, Oct 28 (KUNA) -- An Israeli aircraft attacked a group of members of the Islamic Hamas movement in Gaza on Sunday killing one activist and Israeli ground troops bulldozed Palestinian properties at the demarcation line between the strip and Israeli-patrolled territories.
Dr. Ashraf Al-Qudra, spokesman of the health department in Gaza, said in a statement to Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) an Israeli missile-equipped reconnaissance aircraft fired a single rocket at the Palestinians on Salah Eddine Street in the town of Khan Youness. The raid resulted in death of 27-year-old Suliman Al-Qarra, a member of Ezz-Eddine Al-Qassam Brigade, military wing of the Islamic movement. Another Hamas activist was wounded and transported to hospital for treatment of medium wounds.
Ezz-Eddine Al-Qassam Brigades issued a statement acknowledging that Al-Qarra was member of the faction and that he "had fallen as a martyr in Zionist bombing that targeted a group of members of the organization." Simultaneously, an Israeli ground force, led by three Merkava tanks and equipped with four bulldozers, advanced at dawn toward a Palestinian-inhabited region east of the village of Abasan, located east of Khan Youness. The force moved amid a hail of gunfire targeting the Palestinians' houses, cultivated fields and properties. Shortly later, the troops started bulldozing and ravaging structures and groves in the region.
The fresh military actions followed a three-day shaky lull that had been mediated by Egypt. The strip witnessed, last week, record military escalation that resulted in death of eight Palestinians.
Hamas' gunners often target Israeli settlements and towns and Tel Aviv retaliates with air strikes. (end) mzt.rk KUNA 281031 Oct 12NNNN