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Members of the Hamas Executive Force attending a protest organized by Hamas in Gaza on Friday. (Reuters)
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Last update - 07:33 02/12/2007
Hamas threatens to 'strike deep' after six militants killed in Gaza
By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent, Haaretz Service and News Agencies
Tags: Hamas, Gaza, IDF

A spokesman for the military wing of Hamas threatened Saturday to strike deep inside Israel in response to the deaths of six militants in two separate Israel Defense Forces operations in the southern Gaza Strip.

Speaking at the funerals of the Hamas militants in Khan Yunis, Iz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades spokesman Abu Obaida said, "The enemy must be ready for black funerals. Al-Qassam Brigades will turn everything on the head of the Zionists ... and attack them unexpectedly."

Early Saturday, an Israel Air Force strike killed five Hamas members, prompting threats by Gaza militants to fire longer-range rockets at Israeli border towns.
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Eight people were wounded, including one critically, in the strike near Khan Yunis, close to the border with Israel, according to Moaiya Hassanain of Gaza's Health Ministry.

Hamas said the dead were members of its military wing, while many of the injured belonged to the Popular Resistance Committees, a smaller militant group allied with Hamas. Hamas said the men were on a night patrol east of Khan Yunis in southern Gaza.

The IDF said it carried out the strike after identifying armed men near the border with Gaza.

In a separate incident in central Gaza on Saturday, IDF forces patrolling the border fence opened fire on a group of gunmen, killing one and wounding three, the army and Palestinian officials said.

The IDF carries out regular operations in Gaza, targeting the militants who are launching near-daily rocket barrages into Israel.

Abu Mujahed, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, said his
brother was one of those killed in the air strike earlier Saturday. "This is a tax we pay for [creating] a homeland," he said of his loss.

The spokesman vowed his group would develop rockets with a longer range, to hit more Israeli towns. "The real barrage of rockets has not yet begun," he said.

"22 kilometers is not the ceiling," Mujahed stated, in an apparent claim that the group already has rockets with that range.

Israel began reducing fuel supplies to Gaza last month in response to ongoing rocket fire from Palestinian militants, and planned to begin scaling back electricity beginning Sunday.

The High Court of Justice ruled Friday that the government can continue cutting fuel supplies to residents of Gaza but must postpone an electricity cut planned for this weekend. The decision to cut power to the Strip has been driven by the near-daily barrages of rockets and mortars fired by Gaza militants that have killed 12 Israelis and disrupted life for thousands.

IDF catches two Palestinian teens with bombs at West Bank checkpoint

Security forces on Friday found three bombs in a bag belonging to two Palestinian teenagers at the Hawara checkpoint south of Nablus in the West Bank.

The youths were taken for questioning following the discovery, and sappers blew up the bombs in a controlled explosion.

Earlier, five mortar shells were fired by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip toward Israeli territory. All of the shells struck inside Gaza, near the fence on the border with Israel.

Also on Friday, Palestinians opened fire on Israel Defense Forces troops patrolling the Gaza border fence. No one was hurt in the shooting.

In the West Bank, damage to an Israeli car was caused near Nablus by a Molotov cocktail and stones thrown by Palestinian militants. No one was hurt in that incident, either.

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      1.   You can not blame palestinians for learning from mistakes 04:40  |  Johnny 01/12/07
      2.   Life insurance rates will soon double for "militants" 04:41  |  Murray of Montreal 01/12/07
      3.   Palestinians must like punishment 05:12  |  Conroy 01/12/07
      4.   Johnny,Murray,Conroy...you three are all heart... 06:01  |  Silvienne 01/12/07
      5.   Very productive IDF ... 06:01  |  protected civilian 01/12/07
      6.   Re: #4 Johnny, et. al. 06:19  |  Jabotinsky 01/12/07
      7.   Silvienne is a dreamer 06:26  |  john 01/12/07
      8.   #4 Of course they can stop the Quassam 07:31  |  Robert 01/12/07
      9.   #4 Silvienne 07:41  |  Franco 01/12/07
      10.   Silvienne 07:51  |  infidel 01/12/07
      11.   #3Conroy. The one dealing out the punishment... 11:11  |  Maureen Ann 01/12/07
      12.   GAZA 11:13  |  The Teacher/Instruct 01/12/07
      13.   Silviene - you are all brains .... 12:36  |  ChanahS 01/12/07
      14.   palestinians masochistic -enjoy being punished 12:52  |  don 01/12/07
      15.   Summary Killings = War Crimes by IDF/IAF 13:11  |  POP 01/12/07
      16.   Galid was "identified [as an] armed men near its border" 13:14  |  POP 01/12/07
      17.   Armed Terrorist at Border = IDF 13:17  |  POP 01/12/07
      18.   More shameful and immoral killing of Palestinians by the IAF 13:19  |  Dutch 01/12/07
      19.   Thank you, IDF soldiers, for protecting our lives and 13:21  |  A Jewish mother 01/12/07
      20.   Israel has become an immoral nation 13:31  |  Dutch 01/12/07
      21.   INFIDEL TO SILVIENNE 13:35  |  Brant 01/12/07
      22.   Some Nerve 13:39  |  mrrad 01/12/07
      23.   Silvienne # 4 - and you are all brain .... 15:02  |  ChanahS 01/12/07
      24.   Maureen Ann # 11 15:04  |  ChanahS 01/12/07
      25.   Brant 15:28  |  infidel 01/12/07
      26.   DUTCH Where in GAZA do you Live? 15:42  |  Gil 01/12/07
      27.   #4 | @Silvienne and Dylan: Hold your fire! 15:48  |  Human Rights Group 01/12/07
      28.   To Silvienne 15:51  |  Analyst 01/12/07
      29.   Sylvienne and Bob Dylan 16:25  |  ChanahS 01/12/07
      30.   Silvienne - Nothing to lose? 16:27  |  Michael Jacobs 01/12/07
      31.   Silvienne: "Nothing more to lose": Win-win-situation 17:04  |  Doc 01/12/07
      32.   Israel needs to keep pressure on Hamas and other terrorists 17:20  |  Marwan مروان خوري 01/12/07
      33.   @"Dutch" 17:22  |  Aspirin 01/12/07
      34.   Bob the Dylan? 17:31  |  Therapist 01/12/07
      35.   SO.. Carrying a gun or belonging to a defence force, is a target? 18:01  |  Micha 01/12/07
      36.   Peace Plan???? 18:10  |  Joe 01/12/07
      37.   #20 Is israel an immoral nation? - No, Dutch is an immoral woman. 18:15  |  Vittorio 01/12/07
      38.   Silvienne and other leftists still consider terrorists civilians 18:34  |  William 01/12/07
      39.   34 Re Israeli addiction 18:36  |  Therapist 2 01/12/07
      40.   Moron = Pop #17 18:38  |  William 01/12/07
      41.   19 Jewish mother the Israeli army is not protecting you 18:47  |  Arab mother 01/12/07
      42.   Dutch - do you really need to lie to make a point? 18:50  |  William 01/12/07
      43.   Dutch and other pathological Israel bashing drones 18:55  |  Marwan مروان خوري 01/12/07
      44.   Again the pals using teens for terror 19:03  |  KUTW 01/12/07
      45.   4.Silvienne: I am also all heart 19:06  |  KUTW 01/12/07
      46.   Few armies in the world go to the extend the IDF goes to protect 19:13  |  Marwan مروان خوري 01/12/07
      47.   Plan on being uprooted... 19:16  |  Dutch 01/12/07
      48.   Searing the Conciousness - A Bankrupt Strategy 19:17  |  Mark of Lewiston 01/12/07
      49.   #4 Silvienne, Israel COULD stop the Qassams 19:24  |  Yonatan 01/12/07
      50.   POP`s faulty logic. IDF - recognized army, Hamas - terrorists 19:29  |  Marwan مروان خوري 01/12/07
      51.   Good job IDF/IAF 20:13  |  Nemesis 01/12/07
      52.   Bravo the IAF 20:13  |  KUTW 01/12/07
      53.   4. Silvienne 20:19  |  KUTW 01/12/07
      54.   # 41 Arab mother...it doesn`t seem to be working 20:23  |  Lynn 01/12/07
      55.   #4 Silvienne; Let them fire all the Qassams that they wish 21:01  |  Murray of Montreal 01/12/07
      56.   dutch 21:08  |  nathalie gruesome 01/12/07
      57.   Violence is stronger than the rule of law 22:07  |  brad 01/12/07
      58.   ChanahS. Your philosophy... 23:15  |  Maureen Ann 01/12/07
      59.   They shoot 1 Quaasam; we will shoot 10 23:26  |  ARock 01/12/07
      60.   A response to Brad`s dumb question 23:34  |  The Oracle of Delphi 01/12/07
      61.   Dutch 23:44  |  george 01/12/07
      62.   More threats! This calls for more targeted assasinations. 23:46  |  Murray of Montreal 01/12/07
      63.   Expected Israeli provocations have begun 23:58  |  Rafhsanjahni 01/12/07
      64.   Gil, 26....to answer your Q RE: Dutch 00:20  |  Uday H. 02/12/07
      65.   Kol ha Kavod 00:26  |  steve dill 02/12/07
      66.   Moronic Hamas and Friends 00:28  |  Jane 02/12/07
      67.   Oracle-the question isn`t dumb, the answer is 00:35  |  brad 02/12/07
      68.   Good job Israel! 00:36  |  Gina 02/12/07
      69.   Moron Ann # 58 00:40  |  ChanahS 02/12/07
      70.   funerals 01:01  |  vik 02/12/07
      71.   israel goes in everyday and causes murder and mayhem in Gaza,most 01:03  |  lakshmi 02/12/07
      72.   Dutch, you are having a tough time; I understand? 01:11  |  Dan 02/12/07
      73.   Time to act -no more crap 01:12  |  Mr UK 02/12/07
      74.   Lakshmi Ha ha 01:25  |  ChanahS 02/12/07
      75.   The Hamas Leadership are... 01:29  |  R 02/12/07
      76.   It`s Time To Consider The Threats from Hamas as 01:37  |  Eli 02/12/07
      77.   chest beaters 02:15  |  dav zee 02/12/07
      78.   chest beaters 02:25  |  dav zee 02/12/07
      79.   Dutch "No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life" 02:43  |  Gary 02/12/07
      80.