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Gaza: Israel killed at least seven Palestinian gunmen in a raid on the Gaza Strip on Wednesday and vowed to keep up pressure on fighters in the Hamas-run territory.
Medical workers and Hamas said four of the militants were affiliated with the Islamist movement and two came from the Popular Resistance Committees, a coalition of militant groups.
An Israeli army spokeswoman said the attack was mounted from the air and ground after anti-tank missiles were fired at Israeli troops operating in the area.
Hamas Islamists routed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah forces to seize control of the coastal territory in June. The Jewish state regularly raids the Gaza Strip to try to stop Gaza militants from firing mortars and short-range rockets into southern Israel.
Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said yesterday that even though rocket fire continues, the army had made strides in curbing militant activity in Gaza through air strikes and raids. He reiterated that a major incursion was not imminent.
"We will bring an end to the Qassam (rocket fire). We are not eager to launch a big operation, but we will not be deterred from doing it, if and when we have to," Barak said.
Abbas, who holds sway in the larger West Bank, in November relaunched talks with Israel and aims to reach a deal on Palestinian statehood by the end of the year. But Hamas opposes the peace drive. Its control of the Gaza Strip will complicate any deal.
Abbas this week urged Hamas to cede control of Gaza and start reconciliation talks with his Fatah faction, but hours later some of the worst factional fighting between the two sides in months erupted in Gaza, killing seven people.
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