Gaza mourns airstrike victim as Israel ends incursion

Ma'an
Israel's military incursion into the southern Gaza Strip ended late Saturday morning, killing one and injuring dozens in what officials say was the bloodiest Israeli operation since Operation Cast Lead, which ended in January 2009.

The funeral procession for Haitham Abed Al-Hakim Arafat, 23, a civilian who was killed in an overnight airstrike, was held in Khuza'a, which locals said was "devastated" by Israel's operation into the border town, east of Khan Younis...

Residents said Israeli tanks and armored bulldozers withdrew from the town, after partially destroying the home of Hashem Ad-Dughmah home, 200 meters from Israel's border. "It was the only home left in that area," one local told Ma'an.

An Israeli military spokeswoman told Ma'an that "overnight the IDF continued to operate in the area in which the deadly exchange of fire occurred, which killed two IDF soldiers wounded another two, so as to remove infrastructure used by the terrorists to carry out the attack."

Medics said 13 Palestinians were injured when tanks and bulldozers moved into Khuza'a, with injuries ranging from critical to moderate.

Israel's incursion ended a day after its army was involved in deadly clashes with Palestinian resistance factions, which left two Palestinian fighters and two Israeli soldiers dead. Hamas' armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, claimed responsibility for the clashes,

The spokeswoman said the army was not aware of an aerial strike in Gaza overnight or this morning.

Four Palestinians and two Israeli soldiers were also reported injured in Friday's violence, among them was a 10-year-old boy who was transferred to the Nasser Hospital from Abasan with serious injuries, Ma'an's correspondent reported from the scene.  Full story