Israeli Strike Kills 3 Palestinians

IBRAHIM BARZAK, AP
Sun Nov 4, 5:53 AM EST
GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip —
Israeli aircraft fired at a rocket-launching site in the northern Gaza Strip early Sunday, killing three civilians sleeping in a nearby storage container, Palestinian officials said.

A militant from the Islamic Jihad militant group was killed in a separate Israeli ground attack.

The military said the airstrike targeted a rocket squad that attacked southern Israel earlier in the morning. The ground attack targeted a rocket squad preparing a launch, it said.

Militants frequently set up mobile rocket and mortar launchers in the area, near the town of Beit Lahiya.

Gaza security officials said the three civilians were guards in a nearby factory who were not involved in rocket-launching operations.

The metal container where the men were sleeping was reduced to rubble. The force of the blast peeled away the roof of the structure and blood stained the walls. About 50 yards away, two mobile rocket launchers were hidden below some trees.

Hospital officials identified them as Zaher al-Aer, 40, his 18-year-old son, Youssef, and a neighbor, Mohammed Abu Herbet, 23.

Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for three rocket attacks on southern Israel early Sunday. The military said no one was hurt in any of the attacks.

A fourth attack hit an electric pole in the southern Israeli town of Sderot, knocking out some power.

Separately, an explosion ripped through a training camp of Hamas militants in central Gaza. The military, which acknowledges its activities against militant groups, denied involvement, raising the possibility that explosives were mishandled.

Separately, an explosion ripped through a training camp of Hamas militants in central Gaza on Sunday. The cause was not immediately known.

Palestinian medical officials said two people were wounded. The Israeli army said it was looking into the report.

Meanwhile, a Palestinian military court in the West Bank convicted six junior officers for abandoning their posts during Hamas' takeover of the Gaza Strip, sentencing them to up to three years in prison.

It was the first trial stemming from the week of fighting last June, in which the Islamic militant group Hamas routed forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas of Fatah.

The officers put on trial had argued that they were being turned into scapegoats. Many Fatah loyalists, including senior security officers and leading politicians, fled Gaza during the Hamas takeover and have not been punished.

In its decision Sunday, the military tribunal convicted six of eight defendants for disobeying orders and leaving their posts. Two colonels each received three-year sentences, while three lower-ranking officers were each sentenced to 18 months. A sixth man received a five-month sentence. Two others were acquitted.

Defense lawyer Abdel Karim Hamad said he would appeal to the Palestinian Supreme Court, claiming the military had no jurisdiction in the case. He said there was no evidence of wrongdoing by his clients, and said, "it is clear this court is looking for scapegoats."

The Supreme Court is expected to rule in December. Its decision will determine whether others go on trial.

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