Palestinian sources reported Thursday that two Palestinian fishermen were wounded when an Israel Defense Forces ship fired upon them near the Gaza shore. According to the report, a third fisherman was missing.

Earlier Thursday, the IDF reported that a fishing boat had strayed from the zone in which Palestinian fishermen are allowed to fish, and the Palestinians manning the ship failed to respond to IDF calls to halt. The IDF ship then fired several warning shots but did not hit anyone. Several hours later, the Palestinians reported the casualties.

Also Thursday evening, Palestinian militants fired a Qassam rocket at the western Negev. The rocket landed south of Sderot and caused no damage or injuries.

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IAF drone crashes near Beit Hanun due to malfunction
On Thursday afternoon, an Israel Air Force aerial drone crashed near the north Gaza town of Beit Hanun Thursday.

An IDF spokesperson said that the crash was caused by a technical malfunction.

Contrarily, a statement issued by Hamas' military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, claimed responsibility for downing the drone and said that the organization will soon publish photographs of it.

In November 2005 an IAF aerial drone crashed near Moshav Nativ Ha'asarah in the Negev during a military operation in the Gaza Strip.


Security forces arrest 21 Palestinian militants
Border Police undercover forces Thursday arrested Khaled al-Haj, head of Hamas in Jenin, and a second militant, in Jenin.

19 militants were arrested during separate operations in the West Bank, including nine Fatah members in Qalqilyah.