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Israel air strike 'kills Gaza militant' Islamic Jihad militant killed in Gaza Strip air strike
(about 6 hours later)
Israeli air strikes have killed one Palestinian militant and injured at least another two in the Gaza Strip, Palestinians say. One Palestinian militant has been killed and at least two others injured in an Israeli air strike in the Gaza Strip, Palestinian medics say.
The militants were all members of the Islamic Jihad, the group said. Islamic Jihad confirmed the dead man had been a member of its military wing.
The Israeli military said its air strikes targeted two groups of militants east of Gaza City, who were preparing to fire rockets into Israel. The Israeli military said its aircraft had targeted two groups of militants east of Gaza City, which had been preparing to fire rockets into Israel.
Palestinian officials also said Israeli troops moved into a buffer zone near Gaza City before the strikes. Witnesses said they had earlier clashed with Israeli troops who crossed the Gaza border and entered a buffer zone.
Islamic Jihad is one of the main militant groups in Gaza but is not directly affiliated with Hamas, the militant group running the Gaza Strip. Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, said it had dispatched forces to the area and that they had exchanged fire with the Israeli soldiers.
In October, Israel released about 500 Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails in a swap for the captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. An Israeli military spokeswoman did not comment on the reported ground operation, but said it would "continue to take action against those [who] use terror against the State of Israel".
Some of those released were Islamic Jihad members. Islamic Jihad has been involved in a number of clashes with Israeli forces.
A further 500 Palestinian prisoners are due to be freed as part of the deal later this year. Last month, nine members of the group, as well as an Israeli civilian, were killed during several days of fighting.
Correspondents say an escalation in violence could jeopardise those releases. The chief of staff of the Israeli military, Lt Gen Benny Gantz, has warned that it is prepared to launch an operation to protect the hundreds of thousands of civilians living in southern Israel from further rocket attacks.
"If we don't have a choice, we'll know how to operate in Gaza, and when it happens, we will initiate an orderly and painful [operation]," he warned.