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Philadelphi Route (IDF Spokesman)
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| By Associated Press October 18, 2006 |
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The Israel Defense Forces pushed into southern Gaza before dawn Wednesday, killing two Palestinian militants, the army and Palestinians reported.
Israeli soldiers killed the two as they approached army positions near Rafah, on the Gaza Strip's border with Egypt, an army spokesman said.
Palestinian security officials said Israeli infantry and tanks took over a swath of the Gaza-Egypt border before dawn Wednesday, including the Rafah border terminal. Troops carried out house-to-house searches and bulldozers levelled agricultural land near the border, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press.
The army spokesman said Israeli forces were widening the scope of an ongoing operation in southern Gaza, a push he said was aimed at uncovering tunnels used by Palestinian militants to smuggle weapons into the Gaza Strip from Egypt. Israel has charged that militants have smuggled large quantities of weapons over the border since Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Gaza last summer.
Late Tuesday, Palestinians said a Hamas gunman was killed near the Jebaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza during an exchange of fire with Israeli troops. The army said it was checking the report.
Also Tuesday, the Israeli military said its forces discovered a tunnel under the border between Gaza and Egypt near the Israeli border. The military said the tunnel was being used to smuggle weapons into Gaza. Also, two other tunnel shafts were discovered, the military said. Soldiers planned to blow them up later in the day.
The Israelis say they have discovered 13 such tunnels in the past three months. Israel charges that since it withdrew from Gaza a year ago, turning control of the border over to Egypt and the Palestinians, arms smuggling into Gaza has greatly increased.
In clashes Tuesday, Israeli soldiers shot and killed five Palestinians. In three clashes in the northern West Bank on Tuesday, Israeli soldiers killed four Palestinians. In the city of Nablus, Palestinians said undercover soldiers opened fire on a car, killing a local leader of the Fatah-linked Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades and his cousin. The Israeli military said the militant was responsible for attacks against Israelis.
In the nearby town of Qabatiyeh, soldiers killed an Islamic Jihad militant. Also, soldiers fired at Palestinians who were throwing rocks at them, killing one, both sides said.
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