Israeli tanks at Gaza-Israel borders fired artillery shells at open areas in northern and eastern Gaza, Palestinian security sources and witnesses said on Tuesday.

Loud explosions were heard and the artillery shells landed at nonresidential areas, causing no casualties but panic among residents, especially children, said the sources and the witnesses.

The Israeli shelling came amid a beefed up military operation against Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank in a bid to curb rocket fire against Israel.

Meanwhile, Palestinian medics said Rami Khalil, a member of the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed wing of the Fatah movement, has died of wounds sustained during an Israeli air strike in southern Gaza on Saturday.

Joma al-Saqqa, chief of emergency in al-Shifa hospital in Gaza, said Al-Saqqa, who sustained critical wound in the head when he was transferred to the hospital, died on Tuesday.

Eight Palestinian activists have been killed by Israel's targeted killings in the last three days in Gaza, among whom six were al-Aqsa members.

The other two killed by Israeli missiles Sunday night in the Gaza City were from the Islamic Jihad (Holy War).

Source: Xinhua