3 dead in IDF aircraft strike in southern Gaza
IAF strikes car moving near border fence; army says gunmen killed were members of cell which used to fire at combat engineering forces operating near fence
The army said the aircraft fired at two gunmen who were located about 600 meters from the fence with Israel, near the Kissufim crossing. They were hit because they were approaching the fence, the army said.
On Monday, a missile fired from an Israeli aircraft killed six Hamas operatives travelling in a car in central Gaza. The military said they had been targeted as participants in terror activities.
The vehicle was leaving a Hamas military installation when it was targeted by Israeli aircraft, said Dr. Muawiya Hassanin of the Palestinian Health Ministry. Hamas members reported earlier that the car was hit as it approached a Hamas security post.
According to the IDF spokesperson's office, the occupants of the car were members of a rocket-launching cell that had fired a Qassam and a number of mortar shells towards Gaza vicinity communities earlier the same day.
As such, the airstrike is part of continuing operations by the IDF's Gaza Division to combat rocket launchings from the Strip. Although Qassam attacks have decreased in frequency recently, the military continues to observe and act to restrain Palestinian launch cells.
Hanan Greenberg and news agencies contributed to the report
