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Hamas, Jihad attack Israel with mortars, rockets |
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21:21, July 03, 2007 |
Both the armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad (Holy War) movements claimed responsibility on Tuesday for firing mortars and homemade rockets from Gaza into Israel.
Izz el-Deen al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing, said in a statement that its militants fired four mortar shells at Israeli army posts stationed on the borders between northern Gaza Strip and Israel.
Saraya al-Quds, Jihad armed wing, said in two separate press statements that its militants fired three mortar shells at Israeli army posts to the east and south of the Gaza Strip.
The group said it militants fired three mortars at an Israeli army post, which was used to fire tank shells at central and northern Gaza Strip.
It added that another group of militants had also fired a Russian-made Grad missile at the Kerem Shalom border crossing on the borders between Israel and Egypt.
Saraya al-Quds said attacks on the Kerem Shalom crossing were aimed to foil the Israeli plan to operate it while keeping close the Rafah crossing on the borders between the Gaza Strip and Egypt.
Earlier on Tuesday, Palestinian security sources said Israel and Egypt had agreed to operate the Kerem Shalom crossing to give access to 4,000 Palestinians stranded at the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing.
Since June 14, about 4,000 Palestinians, who left the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt for medical treatments or visits, are not able to cross due to the crossing's closure.
Israel decided to close down the Rafah border crossing, while a European Union team of observers also left the crossing after Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip on June 14.
Israel rejected the idea of reopening the Rafah crossing, claiming that it didn't want to coordinate with Hamas, and had insisted to open the Kerem Shalom crossing on the Egypt-Israel border.
Source: Xinhua
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