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Israel kills two militants in new air strikes on Gaza Gaza: New Israeli air strikes leave four dead
(about 3 hours later)
Israeli air strikes have killed four Palestinian militants in Gaza, reports say, as cross-border violence continues for a fourth day. At least two civilians and two militants have been killed by Israeli air strikes on Gaza, medics say, as cross-border violence continues.
Two were killed by strikes in Khan Yunis in the south of the Gaza Strip. The latest strike reportedly killed a 65-year-old man and his 35-year-old daughter in the Jabaliya refugee camp.
Two more were reported to have been killed in Jabalia in northern Gaza, reports say. Earlier, two Islamic Jihad members died in Khan Younis. A blast also killed a 15-year-old boy in Beit Lahiya.
Israel says more that 240 rockets have been fired from Gaza towards Israel since Friday, seriously wounding two Israelis. Israel says more that 240 rockets have been fired from the Gaza since Friday, injuring 35 people, one seriously.
On Monday, 40 rockets had struck southern Israel by late afternoon.
Two exploded near Gedera, only 40km (25 miles) south of Tel Aviv, and another struck the southern city of Ashdod, leaving a woman with moderate injuries, officials said.
The US has condemned the rocket attacks as "cowardly"; the Arab League called the Israeli air strikes "a massacre".The US has condemned the rocket attacks as "cowardly"; the Arab League called the Israeli air strikes "a massacre".
The UN and the European Union have appealed for calm. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has said he is "gravely concerned at the latest escalation, describing rocket attacks on Israeli civilians as "unacceptable" and urging Israel to "exercise maximum restraint".
A total of 23 Palestinians have now died in this latest violence. 'Limited patience'
Palestinian medical sources say a 15-year-old boy was also killed in an explosion near the northern town of Beit Lahiya. But the circumstances of his death are not clear. The cross-border violence was triggered by an air strike on Friday that killed a senior leader of the militant group, the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), who Israel said had been planning an attack.
Initial reports suggested he was killed by an air strike, but the AFP news agency says the Israelis have denied carrying out any attacks in that area, and that one of its correspondents at the scene said the boy might have been killed by an explosive device he was carrying. Militants in Gaza responded quickly by unleashing a barrage of rockets towards southern Israel, triggering further air strikes.
Rocket barrage At least 22 Palestinians, including 18 militants and at least four civilians, have been killed in Israeli air strikes, sources at Gaza's main hospital say.
The Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad said two of its members were killed in separate overnight air strikes. The 65-year-old and his daughter died on Monday when a missile exploded outside their home in the Jabaliya refugee camp, in northern Gaza.
The 15-year-old died in an explosion early on Monday in Beit Lahiya, not far from Jabaliya, reportedly while he was on his way to school.
Palestinian officials blamed a drone strike, but an Israeli military spokesman later denied the claim, saying initial checks indicated that there had been no air strikes in northern Gaza at the time. Reporters also said they could see no evidence of an Israeli attack at the scene.
The two Islamic Jihad militants were meanwhile killed around Khan Younis early on Monday, one of them when a missile struck his motorcycle.
Hospital sources in Gaza said some 25 civilians - including children - were wounded when a rocket struck a house.Hospital sources in Gaza said some 25 civilians - including children - were wounded when a rocket struck a house.
The Israeli military said it carried out six air strikes targeting a "weapons storage facility" and rocket-launching sites in northern and southern Gaza. Islamic Jihad's military wing, the al-Quds Brigades, demanded that Israel cease fire and stop targeting militants pre-emptively.
The Israeli Defense Forces said at least 25 rockets were fired into southern Israel from Gaza on Monday. "We warn the leaders of the enemy of the consequences of testing our patience. Our patience is limited and shall be turned into fire and destruction upon them,'' a masked spokesman told a news conference.
Schools in several southern Israeli communities remain closed for a second straight day. But Israel's chief military spokesman, Brig Gen Yoav Mordechai, said it would not end its "preventative targeting" operations.
The latest flare-up began on Friday when an Israeli air strike on a car in Gaza City killed militant commander Zohair al-Qaisi, secretary general of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), and two of his associates. "If the Qassam [rocket] fire ends, the Israel Defence Forces will not continue [strikes], but the Israel Defence Forces will continue thwarting any attempted terrorist attacks," he told Israel radio.
Israel says al-Qaisi was planning a major attack on its territory. On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that operations would "continue as long as necessary", saying he had given orders to "strike all those who plan on attacking us".
Gaza militants quickly unleashed a barrage of rockets toward southern Israeli communities. 'Terrible price'
Israel has managed to stop some rockets reaching populated areas with the use of its Iron Dome missile-interception system. Leaders of Hamas, the Islamist militant group which governs Gaza, have said Egypt is working to try to bring an end to the violence.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Sunday that operations would "continue as long as necessary", saying he had given orders to "strike all those who plan on attacking us". "I expect matters will calm down," Mahmoud Zahhar told the Reuters news agency in Cairo. "The statements coming from [Israel] either in public or via mediators, especially Egypt, say that they do not want escalation."
Islamic Jihad and the PRC have claimed responsibility for the weekend's rocket attacks. "Hamas has not taken any decision now to escalate. It is trying with the Palestinian factions and the rest of the parties to reach a conditional truce, a truce conditioned on the Israeli enemy halting the aggression and pledging that targeting will not happen again," he added.
Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas - which controls the Gaza Strip - said Egypt was working to try to bring an end to the violence. Islamic Jihad and the PRC - and not Hamas - have said they have been behind the rocket attacks.
'Dangerous escalation'
The increase in violence has alarmed world powers trying to bring peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis back on track.The increase in violence has alarmed world powers trying to bring peace talks between Palestinians and Israelis back on track.
US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Washington condemned "in the strongest terms" the rocket fire from Gaza, saying the attacks had "dramatically and dangerously escalated".US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said Washington condemned "in the strongest terms" the rocket fire from Gaza, saying the attacks had "dramatically and dangerously escalated".
"We call on those responsible to take immediate action to stop these cowardly acts," she said."We call on those responsible to take immediate action to stop these cowardly acts," she said.
The Arab League issued a statement accusing Israel of carrying out a "massacre". The Arab League issued a statement accusing Israel of carrying out a "massacre" and calling for a tough stance from the international community against the Jewish state.
It called for a tough stance from the international community against the Jewish state.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the bloc was "following with concern the recent escalation of violence in Gaza and in the south of Israel".EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the bloc was "following with concern the recent escalation of violence in Gaza and in the south of Israel".
"It is essential to avoid further escalation and I urge all sides to re-establish calm," she said."It is essential to avoid further escalation and I urge all sides to re-establish calm," she said.
UN spokesman Richard Miron called the situation in Gaza "very fragile and unsustainable". Mr Ban told the UN Security Council in New York: "I am gravely concerned at the latest escalation between Gaza and Israel and once again civilians are paying a terrible price."
"We deplore the fact that civilians are once again paying the price," he said.