Israeli army helicopters and F16 warplanes targeted at predawn on Friday two houses in Gaza City, causing severe destruction and fear among the population, eyewitnesses said.

They said that an Israeli F16 warplane fired one rocket at a building used by the auxiliary force of the Interior Ministry under the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas)-led government in northern Gaza City, causing severe destruction, but no injuries were reported.

Shortly before the building was targeted, another house in western Gaza City was destroyed after Israeli Apache helicopter fired one rocket at the house, wounding at least one Palestinian.

Palestinian security sources in Gaza said that the owners of the two buildings had been informed in advance on telephone by the Israeli army shortly before their homes were targeted by the aircraft.

The sources said that more than 20 houses were destroyed in the Gaza Strip since the Israeli army had started targeting houses used by militants in storing weapons used in carrying out attacks against Israel.

Earlier on Thursday, the Israeli army killed 10 Palestinians and wounded 20 others during a ground military operation in southern Gaza Strip. Israel said the aim of the operation is to look for underground tunnels in the area.

On June 25, eight militants using an underground tunnel infiltrated into an Israeli army base, killed two soldiers and kidnapped a third one, who is still captive since then.

Israel escalated its air and ground operations against the Gaza Strip since the abduction of the soldier, saying that the aim of the offensive was to free the soldiers and rein on militants to stop launching homemade rockets at Israel.

Source: Xinhua