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Palestinians surrounding the wreckage of a car in Gaza City after it was targeted in an IAF air strike Wednesday. (Reuters)
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One Palestinian killed in IAF strike on rocket launching cell in Gaza
By Avi Issacharoff and Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondents, and Haaretz Service

The Israel Air Force fired missiles at a Qassam rocket launching cell in the northern Gaza Strip Thursday evening, killing one militant, Palestinian sources reported.

The incident occurred in Beit Hanun, after 11 additional Palestinians had been killed in separate strikes in the Gaza Strip.

Sources said the missile attack killed one gunman and wounded another, both belonging to the Fatah-affiliated militant group Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade.

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An Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman said "the army attacked a group of militants in northern Gaza who had just fired a rocket at Israel."

Earlier Thursday, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas condemned the Israel Defense Forces strikes on the Gaza Strip, calling the operation a "massacre."

The Palestinian news agency Ma'an reported that Abbas, who is currently in New York, addressed the United Nations Security Council and world leaders demanding that they intervene to "stop the massacre of Palestinians being carried out by the army of the occupation in the Gaza Strip."

Meanwhile, UN sources reported Thursday that Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni was scheduled to meet with Abbas in New York on Friday.

The militant group Hamas, who seized control over the Gaza Strip from rival forces loyal to Abbas in June, vowed to avenge the deaths of the Palestinians killed in the IDF raids and said that Israel would "pay heavily" for the attack.

"The resistance factions are ready to force the Zionist enemy to pay a heavy price if they pursue their aggression. All options will be open to the factions in order to defend our people," said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.

Two Hamas militants were killed early Thursday in an Israel Air Force strike near Beit Hanun. Hospital reports said five were wounded.

Several hours earlier, an IAF strike on a car traveling in the Zeitoun neighborhood Gaza City killed five Army of Islam militants. The IDF said in a statement that the car was carrying militants and rockets that were ready to be launched at Israel.

The Army of Islam was involved in the abduction of IDF soldier Gilad Shalit in June 2006, as well as the the March 12 abduction of BBC Gaza Correspondent Alan Johnston, who was released in early July.

On Wednesday evening, four Palestinians were killed by an IDF shell in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanun. It was not immediately clear whether they were armed, but the IDF said the shelling targeted a militant cell that specialized in anti-tank combat.

Palestinians said at least 11 people were wounded in the shelling.

IDF tanks and bulldozers had entered the northern Gaza Strip near Beit Hanun in an effort to clear vegetation and other obstructions often used by Palestinian militants as cover to fire Qassams from the area.

At a funeral on Thursday, hundreds of Army of Islam gunmen marched in a funeral procession in Gaza City, firing in the air in their first-ever public appearance in such large numbers. They sported long beards and black headbands. Many wore dark robes, a style of dress more common in Afghanistan or Pakistan than in Gaza. Gunmen, some wearing masks, fired in the air from Kalashnikov and M-16 assault rifles.

Two Qassam rockets were fired into the western Negev Thursday evening causing no injuries or damage. Since Wednesday, 12 Qassam rockets and some 20 mortar shells exploded inside Israeli territory.

On Wednesday, two Qassam rockets hit the rocket-weary town of Sderot. One of the rockets hit a house in a western Negev community, Israel Radio reported, causing damage but no injuries. The IDF said there were no injuries of damage in the other attacks.

Earlier Wednesday, the IDF said its aircraft struck Qassam rocket launchers in the northern Gaza Strip. Palestinian officials said two people were slightly injured in the strikes, near the towns of Beit Hanun and Beit Lahia.

The casualties were the heaviest sustained in Gaza since the government declared the coastal strip a "hostile territory", and came several hours after Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned of a large-scale military operation in the Strip in order to halt Qassam rocket fire on Israel.

Barak told Army Radio Wednesday morning that Israel "is approaching a large-scale operation ... in the Gaza Strip due to the continued Qassam rocket fire."

"One must understand that such an operation is not simple in terms of force [size], the length of time for which we will have to stay [in the Strip], and in terms of the operation limits that the soldiers will encounter," Barak said. "It is very complicated."

Prime Minister's Office spokesman David Baker said Wednesday that Israel would continue to take "pre-emptive measures" to prevent rocket attacks or other assaults on its citizens.

IDF to impose closure on W. Bank, Gaza for Sukkot holiday
The army also prepared Wednesday to impose an open-ended closure on the West Bank and Gaza Strip ahead of the Sukkot holiday.

The most recent blanket closure on the Palestinian territories, which includes travel bans within Palestinian areas, ended after Yom Kippur on Saturday.

"In light of the significant terror threat during the Jewish holiday... a general closure will be implemented... during the holiday period," a military statement said.

The statement said that the closure will be lifted in accordance with security assessments, and that passage would be allowed for urgent humanitarian cases.

The statement also said journalists could not use the Erez crossing between Israel and Gaza but they were free to enter and leave the West Bank. It gave no explanation for the Gaza ban.

The army said Palestinians also lobbed 20 mortar shells into Israel from the southern part of the strip, but no casualties were reported.

IDF arrests last militant who took part in 2000 lynch of soldiers
The IDF arrested overnight Tuesday the last wanted militant in connection with the 2000 lynching of two IDF reservists, Yossi Avrahami and Vadim Norjitz.

Ayman Zaban was caught in an upscale neighborhood of the northern West Bank city of Nablus after IDF jeeps surrounded a building where he was sleeping, Palestinian officials said.

The attack took place in the West Bank city of Ramallah in the first weeks of the second Palestinian Intifada. Two reservist soldiers, Cpl. Vadim Norjitz , 33, and Yossi Avrahami, 38, were on their way to their army base in the West Bank in October 2000 but took a wrong turn.

They ended up in Ramallah, were arrested and taken to a police station. There, an angry mob stormed the station and beat and stabbed the two men to death.

Graphic pictures showed the crowd tossing the bodies out a second-story window and beating them with iron bars as they lay lifeless on the ground, and a Palestinian proudly holding up his bloodstained hands from the window.

A total of seven wanted militants were arrested in the West Bank overnight Tuesday.

Related articles:
IDF: Rockets discovered in W. Bank not operational
Pardoned Fatah militant detained for planning terror attacks
Barak: IDF closer to large-scale ground op in Gaza
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Vox Populi
Finally there's a platform for an Arab in an Israeli paper and this is what he writes?
  1.   Bravo: Cold-blooded murder caught 17:44  |  Gad 26/09/07
  2.   Now wait for a speedy condemnation from Alan Johnston 17:47  |  Jake 26/09/07
  3.   Good strike, IAF 17:55  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  4.   The terrorist who took part in the lynch 17:58  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  5.   Hey Clickfool, where is your anti-Israeli comment 18:15  |  Moshe 26/09/07
  6.   Nice job, IAF/IDF 18:24  |  Mark 26/09/07
  7.   A GIFT from God! 18:43  |  Maggie 26/09/07
  8.   Wrong again Haaretz. Should read "including six terrorists." 18:48  |  bat yam 26/09/07
  9.   Three more terrorists down 18:50  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  10.   Specially for Moshe # 5 18:51  |  Clickfool 26/09/07
  11.   Three civilians? 18:52  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  12.   Three civilians? 18:53  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  13.   Israelis in the Sukkot, Palestinians in the grave 18:54  |  Indrajaya 26/09/07
  14.   Screw the detainees up 18:55  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  15.   Murderers of civilians, killers of children 18:58  |  Christian 26/09/07
  16.   9 kiled 19:02  |  Choni Davidowitz 26/09/07
  17.   Rocket fire an attempt to stop peace 19:16  |  Lynn 26/09/07
  18.   Not For Ground Op 19:18  |  Ron 26/09/07
  19.   japanese pick-up trucks are not reliable. 19:19  |  bernard 26/09/07
  20.   Time to turn off the electricity 19:24  |  Gilbert 26/09/07
  21.   That`s right:Cold-blood murdering terrorist cold-blooded murderer 19:26  |  Genuine Tosefta 26/09/07
  22.   Isn`t it strange 19:26  |  Chris Linthwaite 26/09/07
  23.   Gaza, about time it was destroyed 19:29  |  ottomatik 26/09/07
  24.   cockroaches 19:31  |  Mike 26/09/07
  25.   IDF arrests last militant who took part in 2000 lynch of soldiers 19:38  |  Boris 26/09/07
  26.   get the leaders including haniyah 19:49  |  yaheskel 26/09/07
  27.   Just following Lebanon`s Example 19:52  |  Aryeh 26/09/07
  28.   More "martyrs"..good 19:56  |  Nemesis 26/09/07
  29.   who were the civilians?? 19:56  |  vik 26/09/07
  30.   #13: Time to wipe out Israel. 20:01  |  Andreas 26/09/07
  31.   Chris Linthwaite...what is even stranger... 20:04  |  Ibrahim 26/09/07
  32.   Mike in Washington 20:07  |  rich 26/09/07
  33.   Chris #12 20:07  |  Max Molenaar 26/09/07
  34.   That`s Too Bad... 20:10  |  Jeff Northridge 26/09/07
  35.   Chris Linthwaite # 12 20:10  |  Philippe 26/09/07
  36.   Why are people bringing up Lebanon? 20:17  |  Mark 26/09/07
  37.   # 21 The arrests are not substitutions.... 20:21  |  Misha 26/09/07
  38.   # 11 Its better if you reside somewhere in the arab... 20:27  |  Misha 26/09/07
  39.   Clickfool # 7 - Foolish Post 20:28  |  Jason 26/09/07
  40.   Clickfool #7 Specially for Moshe # 5 20:34  |  Michael 26/09/07
  41.   Lebanon is the begining of the end 20:35  |  Mike 26/09/07
  42.   What is going to be the punishment for the 20:38  |  John Allen 26/09/07
  43.   # 22 A lucky SOB - you really don`t know... 20:40  |  Misha 26/09/07
  44.   #17 bernard 20:40  |  JOHNSON 26/09/07
  45.   the scum errrrm Linthwaite complains 20:46  |  peter 26/09/07
  46.   #11 Christian 20:46  |  Michael 26/09/07
  47.   #13 Christian, please read #25 Aryeh 20:49  |  Michael 26/09/07
  48.   Pals harass the Israelis 20:51  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  49.   Pals destroy Israelis? homes 20:54  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  50.   # 24 A lacky SOB - you really don`t know... 20:58  |  Misha 26/09/07
  51.   6,9,19,21,27,35 shame shame shame 21:04  |  thru-other-eyes 26/09/07
  52.   #35 Philippe of Los Angeles 21:07  |  Chris Linthwaite 26/09/07
  53.   Egypt will cancel peace agreement with israel 21:07  |  Mike 26/09/07
  54.   When are the Arabs going to stop killing Palestinian Babies? 21:07  |  Rich 26/09/07
  55.   to Clickfool #10 21:09  |  Dik 26/09/07
  56.   NEMESIS 21:09  |  indrajaya 26/09/07
  57.   Peter of Montreal 21:12  |  Chris Linthwaite 26/09/07
  58.   Those terrorists wont murder Israelis any more 21:18  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  59.   TO MISHA 21:19  |  Mike 26/09/07
  60.   Statement 21:22  |  Realistic Arab 26/09/07
  61.   TO MISHA 21:23  |  Mike 26/09/07
  62.   sorry: 27 should be 29 and 35 = 37...excuses 21:34  |  thru-other-eyes 26/09/07
  63.   thru-other-eyes 21:39  |  Bill H. 26/09/07
  64.   Hamas`s failure 21:42  |  Slibovitz 26/09/07
  65.   Palestinians, only science and learning can save you 21:53  |  mehmet 26/09/07
  66.   Crisstus Lintwaiter 21:54  |  ottomatik 26/09/07
  67.   Pals should pay compensations 21:57  |  KUTW 26/09/07
  68.   Talking about Alan Johnston 22:03  |  Israeli 26/09/07
  69.   Those IDF boys are the real lights to 22:04  |  TOMY 26/09/07
  70.   Clickfool here`s my reply 22:06  |  Jasmine Murphy 26/09/07
  71.   indrajaya lost his mind,for him terrorists 22:08  |  TOMY 26/09/07
  72.   #10 Clickfool - Shame On You! 22:08  |  Bill Foonman 26/09/07
  73.   thru-other-eyes 22:13  |  rich 26/09/07
  74.   Capture of the last militant 22:16  |  Avrum 26/09/07
  75.   # 51 Wait, till in your restorans or pizerias and... 22:19  |  Misha 26/09/07
  76.   Well done keep taking `em out, and to Ibrahim.. 22:21  |  Johnny 26/09/07
  77.   Thru other eyes 22:33 &nb