- Title: MIDDLE EAST: Israeli air strike kills one in Gaza refugee camp
- Date: 2nd January 2008
- Summary: AMBULANCE ARRIVING AT SITE RESCUE FORCES AND MEN SURROUNDING DEBRIS FROM BUILDING VARIOUS OF AMBULANCES ON SITE
- Embargoed: 17th January 2008 12:00
- Keywords:
- Topics: International Relations
- Reuters ID: LVA9M692KF6IA1IMSC94Z5GH8G45
- Story Text: An Israeli military strike destroys a Hamas security position at the Al-Bureij refugee camp in Gaza, killing one. Meanwhile, hundreds of Palestinians, stranded for months in Egypt, are allowed back into Gaza.
An Israeli missile strike on a Hamas security position in the central Gaza Strip killed at least one Hamas fighter and wounded three others on Tuesday (January 1), local medical staff said.
The Islamist group, Hamas, which controls the coastal territory, said the man killed was a member of its security force.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said troops in the area fired missiles at a group of gunmen and identified hitting them.
The Israeli military has conducted regular air and ground operations in Gaza in recent weeks. Israeli army spokesmen say the operations are aimed at curbing the launch of rockets fired by Palestinian militants toward communities in southern Israel.
At the Erez Crossing from Israel to Gaza, Israeli authorities allowed 550 Palestinians, who have been stranded in Egypt for roughly four months, to cross into the Gaza Strip on Tuesday (January 1), Egyptian security and border sources said.
There was still no word on when an estimated 1,500 other Palestinians might be able to return home, including roughly 1,100 pilgrims returning from the Muslim hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
Israel allowed 132 stranded Palestinians to return home on Monday, including some who had been stuck at the el-Arish airport and police stations because they had refused to enter Gaza through Israel, Egyptian security sources said.
Stranded hajj pilgrims smashed furniture and windows at an Egyptian-run shelter on Monday, angry they could not immediately return home to Gaza a day after they left the Red Sea port of Nuweiba for el-Arish in north Sinai as Egyptian, Israeli and Palestinian officials negotiated their passage home.
Israel insists they all must pass through Israeli security checks on the grounds that some may be carrying arms or money for the Islamist movement Hamas, which runs Gaza.
Some of the pilgrims had left Gaza for Egypt through a border post not subject to Israeli control and say they do not want to undergo Israeli checks when they go back.
A Hamas spokesman has called on Egypt to let the pilgrims cross directly into Gaza without passing through Israel. Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has said he wanted to see a negotiated solution. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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