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| Israeli shelling kills 18 in Gaza | Israeli shelling kills 18 in Gaza |
| (about 3 hours later) | |
| At least 18 Palestinians have been killed and 40 wounded by Israeli tank fire in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, Palestinian sources have said. | At least 18 Palestinians have been killed and 40 wounded by Israeli tank fire in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, Palestinian sources have said. |
| Palestinian officials said a barrage of tank shells hit civilian homes, and women and children were among the dead. | Palestinian officials said a barrage of tank shells hit civilian homes, and women and children were among the dead. |
| Israel has expressed regret for the civilian deaths and says it is investigating the incident. | Israel has expressed regret for the civilian deaths and says it is investigating the incident. |
| Palestinian leaders have called for an emergency UN Security Council meeting to force Israel to stop military raids. | Palestinian leaders have called for an emergency UN Security Council meeting to force Israel to stop military raids. |
| The Palestinian prime minister, Hamas's Ismail Haniya, denounced the Israeli attack as an "awful massacre" and said talks on forming Palestinian unity government would be suspended. | The Palestinian prime minister, Hamas's Ismail Haniya, denounced the Israeli attack as an "awful massacre" and said talks on forming Palestinian unity government would be suspended. |
| It is the saddest scene and images I have ever seen Eyewitness Attaf Hamad In pictures: Tank attack href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/6127250.stm" class="">Town stunned by shelling | |
| Israeli Defence Minister Amir Peretz ordered the halt in artillery attacks and called for an urgent inquiry into the incident. | |
| Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed regret over the killings and offered humanitarian assistance to the wounded. | Prime Minister Ehud Olmert expressed regret over the killings and offered humanitarian assistance to the wounded. |
| Palestinian hospital officials said 13 of the dead belonged to the same family, and two of them were women and six were children. | Palestinian hospital officials said 13 of the dead belonged to the same family, and two of them were women and six were children. |
| The Israelis withdrew from the town on Tuesday following a major offensive centred in Beit Hanoun. | The Israelis withdrew from the town on Tuesday following a major offensive centred in Beit Hanoun. |
| More than 60 Palestinians and an Israeli soldier were killed in a week-long operation that Israel says was aimed at stopping militant rocket fire into Israel from Gaza. | More than 60 Palestinians and an Israeli soldier were killed in a week-long operation that Israel says was aimed at stopping militant rocket fire into Israel from Gaza. |
| National morning | National morning |
| TV footage from Beit Hanoun showed the victims being taken to hospital in their sleeping clothes, some with terrible injuries. | TV footage from Beit Hanoun showed the victims being taken to hospital in their sleeping clothes, some with terrible injuries. |
| Many of the dead were members of the same family | Many of the dead were members of the same family |
| "It is the saddest scene and images I have ever seen. We saw legs, we saw heads, we saw hands scattered in the street," 22-year-old eyewitness Attaf Hamad told Reuters news agency. | "It is the saddest scene and images I have ever seen. We saw legs, we saw heads, we saw hands scattered in the street," 22-year-old eyewitness Attaf Hamad told Reuters news agency. |
| "I saw people coming out of a house covered in blood. I started screaming to wake up the neighbours." | "I saw people coming out of a house covered in blood. I started screaming to wake up the neighbours." |
| Palestinian leaders announced three days of national mourning throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip. | Palestinian leaders announced three days of national mourning throughout the West Bank and Gaza Strip. |
| A local Hamas leader has called for the group to resume suicide bombings inside Israel, a policy suspended two years ago by the main militant faction. | A local Hamas leader has called for the group to resume suicide bombings inside Israel, a policy suspended two years ago by the main militant faction. |
| "Israel should be wiped from the face of the Earth. It is an animal state that recognises no human worth. It is a cancer that should be eradicated," said Ghazi Hamad, a spokesman for the Hamas-led government. | "Israel should be wiped from the face of the Earth. It is an animal state that recognises no human worth. It is a cancer that should be eradicated," said Ghazi Hamad, a spokesman for the Hamas-led government. |
| Shots have also been fired at the European Union office in Gaza City in an apparent retaliation, Palestinian authorities said. | Shots have also been fired at the European Union office in Gaza City in an apparent retaliation, Palestinian authorities said. |
| Profile: Gaza Strip | |
| Unidentified gunmen opened fire on the building and youths threw stones, Palestinian sources reported, adding no-one was injured in the attack. | Unidentified gunmen opened fire on the building and youths threw stones, Palestinian sources reported, adding no-one was injured in the attack. |
| Israeli forces also killed a 17-year-old civilian near Jabaliya refugee camp, hospital officials in Gaza said. | Israeli forces also killed a 17-year-old civilian near Jabaliya refugee camp, hospital officials in Gaza said. |
| Earlier, in a separate incident, five Palestinians were killed in an Israeli army raid near the West Bank town of Jenin. | Earlier, in a separate incident, five Palestinians were killed in an Israeli army raid near the West Bank town of Jenin. |
| They were said to be members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, an armed offshoot of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement. | They were said to be members of the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, an armed offshoot of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah movement. |
| The Israeli army said it had found large quantities of arms during its six-day operation throughout Beit Hanoun which ended 24 hours earlier. | The Israeli army said it had found large quantities of arms during its six-day operation throughout Beit Hanoun which ended 24 hours earlier. |
| But rocket attacks have continued to hit Israel. Following the Beit Hanoun deaths, militants fired rockets the nearby border town of Sderot, causing minor wounds to an Israeli woman. | But rocket attacks have continued to hit Israel. Following the Beit Hanoun deaths, militants fired rockets the nearby border town of Sderot, causing minor wounds to an Israeli woman. |