By IRNA
Gaza City : Israel carried at least eight different air raids on Gaza early on Monday, killing five Palestinians.
The dead are said to be either members of the Hamas government police force or the Popular Resistance Committees group.
Most of the aerial attacks targeted metal workshops across the territory and there are reports that the Israeli navy was involved in the bombardment.
More than 25 rockets were fired into southern Israel on Sunday, several reaching Ashkelon, a city of nearly 120,000 people, Tel Aviv radio said.
Gaza streets are the scene to funeral processions.
Speakers stacked on minivans blasted out verses from holy Quran as hundreds of mourners trailed behind the vehicles.
One of the recent victims was a six-month-old baby boy killed when a roof collapsed on top of him.
A family relative, Ahmed Borai, 27, said the baby’s mother found out her son was dead when she heard it announced on the radio.
He said that is acting “hysterically” over the rocket attacks from Gaza and said that its military operation could prove
counterproductive.
“They are launching all these attacks that are killing civilians,” Borai said.
“Personally, I don’t agree with Palestinians firing rockets into Israel.
“But if you push people into the corner they are going to fight back.”
For many Gazans, the violence is the latest example of Israeli collective punishment for their support for the Islamic Resistance Movement.
Hamas won the parliamentary elections in 2006, after which the Palestinian Authority was subjected to an economic embargo by the international community because of Hamas’ refusal to recognize Israel.