MIDDLE EAST: Israel yesterday continued its policy of targeting Hamas militants, with helicopter gunships firing at least two missiles at a car in Gaza City, killing one person and injuring 23.
The strike came on the eve of the arrival of a new US envoy, who is expected this weekend in a bid to dampen the violence.
Israeli helicopter gunships fired further missiles in Gaza late last night. Witnesses said they hit the home of a well-known Hamas family and that there was no sign of any casualties.
An Israeli was also shot dead in Jenin yesterday evening and another two Israelis were injured in a shooting attack earlier in the day near the northern West Bank city.
Hamas tentatively identified the dead man as Fuad Ledawi, a member of the group's military wing. Israeli media reports said the car was carrying Hamas men who had earlier fired two rudimentary rockets from the Strip into Israel. This was the sixth strike by Israel on Hamas militants in the last three days. Many of the injured were bystanders.
The American envoy, Mr John Wolf, will head a delegation whose role will be to oversee implementation of the road map peace plan. The new mediator's first task will be to hold talks with the two sides in a bid to end the bloodbath of the last few days, in which over 50 Israelis and Palestinians have been killed.
The US Secretary of State, Mr Colin Powell, yesterday called for an end to terror as well as for Israeli restraint. "We all are anxious to see restraint and we understand that it's important to get the terror down."
There were reports last night that despite the violence, security contacts between Israeli and Palestinian officials might resume shortly and that ceasefire contacts between the Palestinian Prime Minister, Mr Mahmoud Abbas, and Hamas leaders might also be revived.
Israeli leaders, however, said yesterday there would be no let-up in the assault on Hamas.
The Deputy Defence Minister, Mr Ze'ev Boim, said: "As a government responsible for the security of its citizens, we must wage a war to the bitter end [against Hamas\] because no one else, at least at this stage, will do it."
Hamas leaders yesterday vowed to meet fire with fire. "We accept the challenge," said Mr Mahmoud Zahar.
Israelis and Palestinians yesterday continued to bury their dead from the blood-letting of the last few days. In Israel, the last of the 17 victims of the suicide bus bombing carried out by Hamas in Jerusalem on Wednesday were laid to rest. In Gaza, Palestinians buried those killed in a missile strike on the car of a Hamas militant on Thursday, in which he was killed along with his wife and two children.