By Xinhua,
Gaza : At least one Palestinian militant was killed Thursday in a pre-dawn Israeli attack on the northern Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun, medics and witnesses reported.
Witnesses said the Israeli tanks and bulldozers rolled into northern area of the town amid intense gunfire, adding that militants offered resistance to the Israeli forces.
Mo’aweya Hassanein, chief of emergency and ambulance services in the Palestinian health ministry said that one Palestinian was killed and three people were wounded in Israeli troops’ gunfire.
An army spokesman told Israeli radio’s Arabic service that there was no time limit for the operation in Beit Hanoun, which aimed at preventing shelling from the town into Israel.
According to the residents of the area, around 20 tanks, armoured vehicles and bulldozers backed by helicopters stormed al-Sekka neighbourhood in the town, and still operating in the area.
Al-Qassam Brigades, Islamic Hamas movement’s armed wing said its militants confronted the Israeli armed forces with missiles and mortar shells. No injuries were reported among the soldiers.
Meanwhile, in Khan Younis, Israeli warplane struck a house in west of the town, adding that the missile was aimed at a group of militants, but the rocket failed to clear and hit the house causing extensive damage to the structure.