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Palestinian militants hold funeral

An Israeli soldier walks next to an army bulldozer as he crosses back into Israel following an operation in the Gaza Strip yesterday. PHOTO: AFP

Hundreds of gunmen from the shadowy Army of Islam marched in a funeral for five Gaza militants on Thursday, firing in the air in their first ever public appearance in such large numbers.

The five Army of Islam members buried on Thursday were among the 12 Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes over two days. The Israeli military said it has targeted militants involved in rocket fire on Israeli border towns.

A statement from the group posted on Islamic Web sites on Thursday said a sixth member wounded in Wednesday's strike against its men had since died of his injuries, but did not say when.

The Army of Islam, an offshoot of Hamas, has been linked to the March kidnapping of BBC journalist Alan Johnston, since released, and the capture in June last year of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

Some 300 Army of Islam gunmen marched in Thursday's funeral procession. Sporting long beards and black headbands, many wore dark robes, a style of dress more common in Afghanistan or Pakistan than in Gaza. Gunmen, some wearing masks, fired in the air from Kalashnikov and M-16 assault rifles.

The Israeli army said it had targeted the Army of Islam members because their jeep was carrying homemade rockets ready for use. Thirteen rockets and dozens of mortar shells have hit Israel since Wednesday, despite warnings by Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak that he is moving closer to ordering a large-scale military offensive in Gaza. The rockets caused no injuries.

The Israeli military said ground forces fired at a Palestinian rocket-launching squad in the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday, after rockets were launched at Israel.

Palestinian security officials said a militant of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine was killed by the Israeli fire. They said he was not participating in the rocket fire but was moving, armed, near a launch site when he was hit.

Following the airstrikes, Israeli tanks and bulldozers briefly entered the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanoun, in response to rocket fire from the area. At one point, a tank shell was fired toward a group of people between two houses, killing four and wounding 25, witnesses and hospital doctors said.

Early on Thursday, Israeli aircraft fired a missile toward a group of militants near Beit Hanoun, killing two and wounding five.

David Baker, an Israeli government spokesman, said Israel's strikes are part of a "continuous policy of preventing `terrorist' activity against our civilians, including our taking pre-emptive measures as needed to thwart these attacks."
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