Rabbi of nearby settlement killed in shooting attack in Gaza
By Arnon Regular, Ha'aretz Correspondent, Ha'aretz Service and Agencies
A 40-year-old Israeli civilian was killed Friday morning in a shooting attack near the Gush Katif bloc of settlements in the southern Gaza Strip. The man was named as Rabbi Yitzhak Arameh, the rabbi of the ultra-Orthodox settlement of Netzer Hazani. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the shooting.
Arameh was travelling with his wife and all six of his children when gunmen opened fire on their vehicle from a roadside ambush, critically wounding him. A Magen David Adom emergency team rushed to the scene, but was unable to save the man's life. None of the other members of the family were injured.
Security forces were scouring the area for the gunmen, who feld the into Palsestinian controlled area immediately after attacking the vehicle.
Rabbi Arameh was laid to rest later Friday afternoon on Herzliya.
Several IDF tanks entered the Beit Hanoun area of the northern Gaza Strip late Friday, but it was not immediately clear what they were doing there and the army would not say. Also in Gaza, the army closed several checkpoints along major roads connecting the southern and northern sections of the strip, making them impassible to Palestinians.
IDF troops kill two Palestinian militants in Dir al-Balah Earlier two Palestinian militants were killed during a gunfight between IDF troops and armed members of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Dir al-Balah early Friday morning. In the same operation, the IDF arrested three wanted militants.
IDF tanks entered the Gaza Strip town at sunrise Friday, surrounded the house of an Islamic Jihad activist, and, once all residents had left the premises, demolished the building.
The gunmen, trying to prevent the demolition, opened fire on the troops, and two Palestinians were killed, according to Palestinians medical sources. The IDF had no immediate comment.
Also Friday troops arrested 10 Palestinians in the West Bank, among them several wanted men.
Palestinian killed in collision A Palestinian passenger was killed in the West Bank town of Jenin in a collision between an IDF tank and a minibus Thursday evening, Palestinian sources reported.
The sources said it was an accident, although the minibus driver maintained the tank deliberately crashed into his vehicle.
The IDF provided no immediate reaction.
Earlier Thursday, Palestinian sources reported that an 11-year-old Palestinian girl was shot to death In the Gaza Strip town of Rafah during a gunfight between IDF troops and armed Palestinian militants. The Israeli army said it was checking the report.
Witnesses said soldiers stationed at the Tarmit military outpost on the border with Egypt opened machine-gun fire at a residential area, adding one of the gunshots hit the child in the chest.
Hospital officials identified the victim as Nadda Maddi.
Thousands of mourners buried the body of a 15-year-old youth from Rafah Thursday who was shot dead Wednesday afternoon, also by Israeli soldiers stationed on the border.
The latest fatality was the third child or youth to be killed this week by Israeli soldiers in the southern Gaza Strip towns of Rafah and Khan Younis.
Palestinian sources also reported Thursday that the IDF demolished six houses in Shabura, which is in southern Rafah
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