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Last update - 23:21 10/07/2008
Hamas arrests Gaza rocket squad after two Qassams hit Negev
By Haaretz Service and News Agencies
Tags: Hamas, Israel, cease-fire 

Hamas arrested three Palestinians who fired rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip on Thursday, a militant faction said, in the first such detentions since the Islamist group and Israel agreed on a cease-fire last month.

Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a militant offshoot of President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah faction, said Hamas men pursued its members after the attack and "abducted them" in Jabalya refugee camp.

"We demand their immediate release," said Abu Qusai, a brigades spokesman.
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The cease-fire deal calls on Hamas to prevent cross-border rocket fire and attacks from the Gaza Strip and for Israel to halt its raids and ease an economic blockade of the impoverished territory.

Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said "we stress that all parties should maintain the national agreement that was reached with a consensus."

Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip a year ago after routing forces loyal to the secular Fatah group, had previously said it would not use force against other militants who violate the truce.

Al Aqsa said it launched two Qassam rockets at the western Negev in retaliation for the Israel Defense Force's killing of an unarmed member of the group as he tried to cross a border fence into Israel earlier in the day. His death marked the first fatality along the Israel-Gaza border since the beginning of the Egypt-brokered truce on June 19.

An IDF spokesman said soldiers shot the man after he ignored their calls to stop and only saw later that he had been unarmed. The family of the victim, an 18-year-old youth, said he was probably looking for scrap metal along the border when he was killed.

The rockets struck open areas in the Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council, causing no damage or injuries.

"If a total cessation of fire from Gaza, as committed in the calm, is not implemented, the calm has no possibility to succeed," Prime Minister Ehud
Olmert's spokesman, Mark Regev, said.

More than a dozen rockets and mortars have been fired from Gaza since the truce began. In response, Israel has kept Gaza Strip crossings closed for about half the time, despite its pledge to gradually lift the siege of the coastal territory in exchange for calm.

Abu Zuhri said a Hamas delegation met Egyptian chief of intelligence Omar Suleiman in Cairo last night and urged Egypt to press Israel to stop closing crossings and to abide by the cease-fire.

Until Israel carried out its obligations under the truce deal, Abu Zuhri said, "there would be no chance" of resuming indirect talks on the fate of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier seized by Gaza militants in a cross-border two years ago.

On Wednesday, Border Police troops operating undercover in the West Bank opened fire and killed a wanted Hamas man attempting to flee arrest.

Palestinians said two people were wounded in the incident in Kufr Dan, near the northern city of Jenin. They and two others were arrested, they said. The military had no immediate comment.

The truce does not extend to the West Bank, and Israel has been increasing its efforts to crack down on Hamas militants there. The operations have led to condemnation from the Palestinian Authority, which accuses Israel of hampering its local security efforts.

In the West Bank city of Nablus on Thursday, Israeli troops raided several charity organizations and a medical clinic and closed down a local television station apparently linked to Hamas, Palestinian officials said.

"The occupation's closure of some institutions will not delegitimise them ... and we will continue to deal with them," Palestinian Interior Minister Abdel-Razzak Yahya, referring to Israel, told a news conference.

Also on Thursday, a Palestinian health official said two Palestinians were killed in the collapse of a smuggling tunnel under the Gaza-Egypt border.

Health Ministry official Moawiya Hassanain said Thursday that five people were pulled out of the tunnel alive.

Local residents say the tunnel was used for smuggling drugs and fuel into Gaza.

Related articles:
  • Border Police kills Hamas man trying to flee West Bank arrest
  • Defense Ministry to PMO: Hurry and reinforce Gaza-area homes
  • Olmert: Gaza cease-fire is fragile, may be short lived
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      1.   In The Last 24 Hours 09:34  |  Natan 10/07/08
      2.   Well 10:04  |  Jack 10/07/08
      3.   #1 Natan. A terrible threat to Israel - unarmed Palestinians. 10:06  |  Maureen Ann 10/07/08
      4.   shaking fragile true 10:11  |  RS 10/07/08
      5.   Without people like Natan the world would be even safer. 10:14  |  Andreas 10/07/08
      6.   re #5 `Without people like Natan...` 10:29  |  Colin Wright 10/07/08
      7.   response 3 10:38  |  Jacob 10/07/08
      8.   Soooooo, first blood to..... you guessed it! 10:45  |  Johnboy 10/07/08
      9.   Israel playing a sinister game 10:49  |  Joe 10/07/08
      10.   idf kills unarmed gazen 10:50  |  pauline russell 10/07/08
      11.   Undercover troops: Why is nobody concerned 11:01  |  Andreas 10/07/08
      12.   Where is this mentioned in this article? 11:21  |  Baruch Gold 10/07/08
      13.   Oh, I see the Hamas terrorist was a Gazan killed in the West Bank 11:23  |  Baruch Gold 10/07/08
      14.   To Andreas 11: "Why is nobody concerned ?" 11:34  |  Natan 10/07/08
      15.   #11 Why most people don`t care 11:49  |  Jasper 10/07/08
      16.   #7 Jacob. And they keep coming, don`t they? 11:50  |  Maureen Ann 10/07/08
      17.   A IDF SNIPER FEELS LIKE HE IS GOD 11:51  |  indrajaya 10/07/08
      18.   There are risks in being a scout or a human shield 11:58  |  Binyamin Dissen 10/07/08
      19.   Indrajaya on Snipers And God 12:21  |  Avi 10/07/08
      20.   Gaza truce 12:30  |  Joe 10/07/08
      21.   Truce "rocked" by attempted infiltration, not IDF killing the guy 12:34  |  Dr. L. Brnd 10/07/08
      22.   You see armed soldiers and are orderd to stop. you stop , you 12:41  |  Jack be quick 10/07/08
      23.   terrible reporting 12:43  |  john 10/07/08
      24.   #12 Let me suggest something to you, Barach Gold 13:00  |  Johnboy 10/07/08
      25.   #13 I suggest you read it again, Barach 13:16  |  Johnboy 10/07/08
      26.   #14 Then make sure they remain in uniform, Natan 13:22  |  Johnboy 10/07/08
      27.   Consistent policy 13:24  |  jjvanka 10/07/08
      28.   #15 Jasper handwaves this away. 13:35  |  Johnboy 10/07/08
      29.   Dr Brnd #21 (who violated the ceasefire?) 13:42  |  Guido 10/07/08
      30.   israeli policy,shoot first and then explain with the usual list 13:45  |  lakshmi 10/07/08
      31.   #22 Jack be quick has no doubts..... 13:49  |  Johnboy 10/07/08
      32.   Why should we be concerned? 14:07  |  Ahmed 10/07/08
      33.   The soldiers behaved exactly as they should have. 14:09  |  MR 10/07/08
      34.   "Crossing into Israel" 14:11  |  Guido 10/07/08
      35.   New at this journalism stuff, are we? 14:19  |  Gideon Reader 10/07/08
      36.   This was obviously a suicide, 14:20  |  The Equalizer 10/07/08
      37.   Hamas shooting missiles Doesn`t Rock This so called "truce 14:34  |  S Freedman 10/07/08
      38.   Undercover unit, excellent job done, an Hamasfascist less 14:34  |  maurice 10/07/08
      39.   Kol hakavod for the Undercover unit 14:35  |  Jean 10/07/08
      40.   In the west bank, the Undercover unit is making great job 14:37  |  maurice 10/07/08
      41.   The terrorists never knows who is this man walking around.. 14:38  |  maurice 10/07/08
      42.   Thanks IDF for protecting the people of Israël 14:40  |  Moshe 10/07/08
      43.   Palestinian shot 14:40  |  Christian Van Nieker 10/07/08
      44.   Very typical of IDF to kill unarmed civilians. 14:48  |  Aounist 10/07/08
      45.   Guys read Johnboys posts he`s really entertaining today 15:00  |  Buddy 10/07/08
      46.   killing a teenager. a 19-year is a teen! 15:17  |  bashar 10/07/08
      47.   Ahmed Casablanca 15:22  |  Christian Van Nieker 10/07/08
      48.   #30 Lakshmi. Petition of protest - Mohammed Omer. 15:25  |  Maureen Ann 10/07/08
      49.   Johnboy 15:27  |  Purple canary 10/07/08
      50.   Johnboy 15:32  |  Purple canary 10/07/08
      51.   Where are the Israeli critics of the killing? 15:38  |  christoph 10/07/08
      52.   Aounist: Very typical of IDF to kill unarmed civilians. 15:44  |  Purple canary 10/07/08
      53.   YES! IT`S ALWAYS THE SAME 15:48  |  Mohamed MALLECK 10/07/08
      54.   Another glorious day in Islam 15:48  |  The Imam 10/07/08
      55.   Such nonsense from Israel bashers 16:03  |  rich 10/07/08
      56.   Indrajaya; information from Al Jazeera 16:11  |  Sam C 10/07/08
      57.   Christoph 16:13  |  x-ray 10/07/08
      58.   Mohammed 16:15  |  x-ray 10/07/08
      59.   Mohamed MALLECK 16:19  |  Purple canary 10/07/08
      60.   idf killed 4000+ palesitinians so far in 2008! 16:37  |  bashar 10/07/08
      61.   Why is it so hard 16:42  |  Dave Duncan 10/07/08
      62.   Johnboy, no such thing as "war crimes" 16:52  |  FOX 10/07/08
      63.   Andreas Nathan is right but your twisted mind is wrong 16:57  |  Aby 10/07/08
      64.   Bashar you are lying #60 16:58  |  FOX 10/07/08
      65.   55 Rich in London 16:58  |  ben 10/07/08
      66.   The pals are the redheaded stepchild of the ME 17:06  |  PS 10/07/08
      67.   I changed my mind in mid-stream 17:12  |  Avrum 10/07/08
      68.   Christopher 17:31  |  Nephtaly 10/07/08
      69.   the facts according to Bashar 17:33  |  tristan 10/07/08