Israel strikes suspected Gaza militants, at least 1 dead

Israeli forces strike Gaza militants, 1 dead

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israeli forces fired at Gaza militants from helicopters and tanks early Tuesday, killing at least one Palestinian and wounding three others.

Gaza hospital officials said two more casualties remained at the scene, and that it was unclear if they were alive.

The clash erupted Tuesday near a border crossing in central Gaza. The Israeli military said it struck a group of Palestinians planting explosives near the border fence.

The Islamic Jihad group said it clashed with Israeli forces who entered Gaza. The militants said they came under fire from a helicopter and Israeli tanks. They identified the dead man as a 23-year-old Islamic Jihad fighter.

Gaza’s Hamas rulers have tried to maintain a cease-fire with Israel since the end of the Gaza war in January 2009. However, smaller milltant groups sporadically carry out attacks.

Earlier this month, the militant Islamic group indicated it was trying to keep attacks on Israel in check, following a string of Palestinian rocket assaults on southern Israel and retaliatory Israeli strikes.

Islamic Jihad said that on Sunday, Hamas police detained several of its fighters, along with those from another group, and made them sign pledges that they would not engage in attacks on Israel.

Most of the rocket attacks on Israel had been claimed by groups considered more radical than Hamas. These groups accuse Hamas of going soft on its armed confrontation against Israel.

Last year, Israel carried out a devastating military offensive in Gaza after years of rocket attacks. Since then, Hamas has tried to avoid provoking sweeping Israeli military action and it has not claimed responsibility for any rockets for more than a year.

Israel holds Hamas solely responsible for maintaining quiet on the Gaza border.