MIDEAST: Israel kills four Palestinians, Haniyeh vows to continue resistance in the worse upsurge of violence in Gaza in weeks

Record ID: 340462

  • Title: MIDEAST: Israel kills four Palestinians, Haniyeh vows to continue resistance in the worse upsurge of violence in Gaza in weeks
  • Date: 14th October 2006
  • Summary: BODY BEING CARRIED INTO MORGUE ON STRETCHER
  • Embargoed: 29th October 2006 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVADVPNUAAUIBJZM5IIWV1X0YDAG
  • Story Text: Israeli forces killed four Palestinians, three of them Hamas militants, on Friday (October 13) in the worst upsurge of Israeli-Palestinian violence in the Gaza Strip for weeks, residents said.
    Palestinians said an Israeli missile struck a car in the northern Gaza Strip, killing three Hamas gunmen. Among the dead was a local commander. The army said it was checking the reports.
    The bloodshed added to tension in the densely populated coastal territory that has also been beset by clashes between forces from the governing Hamas Islamist group and loyalists of moderate President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement.
    Israel launched its offensive in the Gaza Strip in late June to try to recover a captured soldier and put a stop to cross-border rocket fire.
    Earlier, a Palestinian woman was shot outside her home in southern Gaza. The army said soldiers searching for tunnels had fired at two gunmen in the area, hitting both of them.
    Hamas resumed rocket attacks on Israel for the first time in one month on Thursday (October 12) as nine Palestinians, including at least three Hamas militants, were killed.
    Almost 240 Palestinians, about half of them civilians, have been killed since Israel launched its offensive in Gaza. Israeli troops had pulled out of the territory a year ago after 38 years of occupation.
    In a speech at a mosque in southern Gaza, Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas told worshipers, "We are committed to the legitimacy of resistance against the occupation, because resistance is a legitimate right of the Palestinian people."
    The bloodshed added to tension in the densely populated coastal territory that has also been beset by clashes between forces from the governing Hamas Islamist group and loyalists of moderate President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah movement.
    Abbas is considering sacking the Hamas-led government or calling a referendum on new elections, his aides have said.
    The worst internal fighting in a decade has stoked fears of civil war after talks between Abbas and Haniyeh over a unity government broke down.
    Israel launched its offensive in the Gaza Strip in late June to try to recover a captured soldier and put a stop to cross-border rocket fire.
    Hamas resumed rocket attacks on Israel for the first time in one month on Thursday as nine Palestinians, including at least three Hamas militants, were killed.
    Almost 240 Palestinians, about half of them civilians, have been killed since Israel launched its offensive in Gaza. Israeli troops had pulled out of the territory a year ago after 38 years of occupation.
    The current government is struggling under a U.S.-led aid embargo designed to force Hamas to recognise Israel, renounce violence and accept past peace agreements with Israel.
    Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal, who lives in Syria, said late on Thursday that the group sees no political gain in recognising Israel and will resist doing so despite the embargo. Hamas's charter calls for Israel's destruction.
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