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Friday, Jun 22, 2012 4:15 PM UTC

Israel: Airstrike kills Gaza militant

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Topics: From the Wires,

JERUSALEM (AP) — An Israeli airstrike killed a Gaza militant Friday as he was preparing to launch rockets, Israel’s military said, the latest casualty in a week-long exchange of cross-border attacks.

Violence erupted Monday when two gunmen infiltrated Israel along its border with Egypt’s Sinai peninsula and killed an Israeli Arab construction worker who was on a crew building a security fence meant to avert such attacks. A little known al-Qaida-inspired group, the Mujahedeen Shura Council of Jerusalem, claimed responsibility and identified the gunmen as an Egyptian and a Saudi.

Since then, Palestinian militants in Gaza have according to the Israeli military’s count fired over 130 rockets at Israel injuring several people, spreading panic and damaging apartment buildings. Israeli retaliatory airstrikes on Gaza militant targets have killed at least 6 Palestinians.

The flare-up is the most serious in months, drawing in militants from Hamas, which has largely refrained from attacking Israel since a war more than three years ago. Other Palestinian groups persisted with rocket assaults and other attacks on Israel during that time.

Gaza health official Ashraf Al Kedra confirmed a death and an injury from the Friday strike. Witnesses said they were militants from a group that frequently launches rockets at Israel.

“Aircraft targeted a terrorist squad during preparations to fire a rocket at Israel from the central Gaza Strip,” the Israeli military said. It said it holds Hamas accountable for any attacks originating from the Gaza strip.

Also Friday, Israeli police said they were investigating hate graffiti found scrawled in Arabic on a synagogue in northern Israel.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld says the phrase, “There is no god but God,” was sprayed on the outside of the synagogue in Moshav Maor.

The vandalism comes days after a mosque in the West Bank was torched and vandalized with Hebrew-language graffiti protesting the Israeli government’s upcoming evacuation of a Jewish outpost in the area.

Ian Deitch

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Gripping photos: The people of the Turkey protests (slideshow)

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  • The protests take on a festive element as police forces move out of the park and square. Wearing a gas mask, this young man dances to traditional Turkish music in front of Taksim Square’s Ataturk Monument.

  • In Gezi Park since March 31st, this protester, originally caught off-guard by the Government’s teargas and water cannons, went out and bought a Russian army mask from WWII, preparing for what was to come.

  • This rambunctious boy seems to be enjoying the chaos. After taking this picture he threw a stone at the already destroyed building in the background.

  • Forming a line, the police face off directly with protesters in Taksim Square. After a while, they retreated and there was a general cheer – a back-and-forth dance that has been common since the beginning of this protest.

  • An elderly woman in Gezi Park reads the news. The tent community occupying the park was violently destroyed on June 16th.

  • Many different groups had set up booths to promote their cause in Taksim Square and Gezi Park. Standing in front of one, this man waves his flag while posing with conviction.

  • Many home-remedies are used to minimize the effects of tear gas. This woman has put a milky solution on her face, removing her mask after the tear gas dissipated. Before sunrise, the police came again for another round of teargasing.

  • People capitalize on the uprising -- selling flags, beer, gas masks, sky lanterns and spray paint to name just a few of the popular items.

  • On Monday morning, June 11, the police execute a strong offensive. Many plain-clothed police officers, like the ones seen here, clash with protesters in the side streets away from the main stand-off in Taksim.

  • The authorities seem to be most aggressive in the night, pushing protesters away from the square and park. After being teargassed this young woman catches her breath with other protesters on Siraselviler Street.

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