A general view shows burned cars after a rocket fired from Gaza landed
in Ashdod October 29, 2011. (REUTERS/Nir Elias)
in Ashdod October 29, 2011. (REUTERS/Nir Elias)
BETHLEHEM (Ma'an) -- An Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip killed two more fighters from the Islamic Jihad's armed wing on Saturday evening, hours after earlier airstrikes had killed five members from the group.
Medical spokesman in Gaza Adham Abu Salmiya said that two fighters from the al-Quds Brigades were killed in the strike on Rafah, south Gaza.
He identified the victims as 21-year old Sami Abu sabt and 25-year-old Suleiman Abu Fatima, both from Rafah.
Robert Miron, the spokesman for Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Roebrt Serry, said the recent escalations "are very worrying."
Miron said in a statement received by Ma'an that: "It is vital to de-escalate now, without delay. We strongly appeal for calm and an end to the violence and bloodshed."
An Israeli army statement confirmed a direct hit on a site being used to fire projectiles into Israel. At least 20 projectiles and mortar bombs hit different sites in southern Israel, wounding three civilians, Israeli police said.
Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades separately took credit.
Remarking on the Rafah deaths, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri accused Israel of a "serious escalation against our people."
Earlier on Saturday, Israeli warplanes had fired on southern Gaza, killing five members of Islamic Jihad's armed wing and injuring 15 others, four of them seriously, medics and security officials said.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli forces fired two missiles at a military site operated by the al-Quds Brigades northeast of Rafah. The attack killed Ahmad al-Sheikh Khalil, a prominent leader in the brigades.
Shortly thereafter rockets were launched toward Israeli targets, the military said. An army spokeswoman confirmed that three projectiles struck Israeli territory around 5 p.m., lightly injuring two people.
Reuters contributed to this report
Medical spokesman in Gaza Adham Abu Salmiya said that two fighters from the al-Quds Brigades were killed in the strike on Rafah, south Gaza.
He identified the victims as 21-year old Sami Abu sabt and 25-year-old Suleiman Abu Fatima, both from Rafah.
Robert Miron, the spokesman for Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process Roebrt Serry, said the recent escalations "are very worrying."
Miron said in a statement received by Ma'an that: "It is vital to de-escalate now, without delay. We strongly appeal for calm and an end to the violence and bloodshed."
An Israeli army statement confirmed a direct hit on a site being used to fire projectiles into Israel. At least 20 projectiles and mortar bombs hit different sites in southern Israel, wounding three civilians, Israeli police said.
Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine and al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades separately took credit.
Remarking on the Rafah deaths, Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri accused Israel of a "serious escalation against our people."
Earlier on Saturday, Israeli warplanes had fired on southern Gaza, killing five members of Islamic Jihad's armed wing and injuring 15 others, four of them seriously, medics and security officials said.
Witnesses told Ma'an that Israeli forces fired two missiles at a military site operated by the al-Quds Brigades northeast of Rafah. The attack killed Ahmad al-Sheikh Khalil, a prominent leader in the brigades.
Shortly thereafter rockets were launched toward Israeli targets, the military said. An army spokeswoman confirmed that three projectiles struck Israeli territory around 5 p.m., lightly injuring two people.
Reuters contributed to this report
Maan News Agency
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