Israeli warplanes struck the southern Gaza Strip on late Monday night, wounding six people, Palestinian medics and witnesses said.

Israeli military aircraft fired missiles at the southern Gaza cities of Khan Younis and Rafah, said the witnesses.

Medics said that six Palestinians were injured in the Israeli air raids.

Earlier, Israeli warplanes pounded a four-storey building in Gaza City, wounding four Palestinians.

Israeli aircraft fired at least one missile at the building in Sheja'ya neighborhood in Gaza City and a huge explosion was heard, said witnesses.

Smoke could be seen billowing out of the building, which was badly damaged in the strike, they added.

Omer al-Mamlook, the owner of the building, along with his family managed to evacuate the building just before it was hit by the Israeli missile, said Palestinian security forces.

Meanwhile, an Israeli army spokesman confirmed the airstrike to Israel Radio, saying that the building was used by the Islamic Jihad (Holy War) militants to store weapons and rockets.

But a spokesman for Jihad, who identified himself only as Abu Ahmed, denied the Israeli allegation, saying that Jihad had never used the house or any other in the densely-populated neighborhood in Gaza City.

Earlier on Monday, six Palestinians including a five-year-old girl were killed in the Israeli shelling on the Gaza Strip.

Israel has continued an almost one-month-old air and ground operation in the Gaza Strip in a bid to bring home a soldier kidnapped by Palestinian militants on June 25 and halt Palestinian rocket attacks.

Source: Xinhua