Israeli attack kills six Gaza militants
GAZA (Reuters) - Israel killed at least six Palestinian gunmen in a raid on the Gaza Strip on Wednesday and vowed to keep up pressure on militants 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 gunmen fired several anti-tank missiles at Israeli troops operating in the area.
Hamas' armed wing, Izz el-Deen al-Qassam, vowed to continue fighting Israel "until victory or martyrdom".
Hamas Islamists routed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' 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.
Israel pulled settlers and troops from Gaza in 2005 in a withdrawal that Palestinians do not consider an end to occupation because Israeli authorities still control Gaza's borders, its air space and coastal waters.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said on Wednesday 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 told Israel Radio.
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 and vows to undermine it. 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.
(Writing by Ari Rabinovitch; Editing by Caroline Drees)
