Israeli troops kill Palestinian woman shielding militants
Israeli forces today opened fire on a group of women who streamed to a Gaza mosque to serve as human shields for gunmen holed up there, killing one and wounding 10, Palestinian officials and witnesses said.
A 22-year-old Palestinian man was also killed in the northern town of Beit Hanoun, which troops seized on Wednesday in a bid to halt Palestinian rocket fire.
More than 20 Palestinians, most of them militants, have been killed since the offensive began.
Gunmen fleeing troops sought refuge in the mosque, and Israeli tanks and armoured personnel carriers quickly surrounded the building, the military and Palestinian security officials said.
Most of the gunmen were thought to be from the military wing of Hamas.
Throughout the night, the two sides exchanged fire.
Witnesses said an Israeli army bulldozer knocked down an outer wall of the mosque.
In the West Bank city of Nablus today, Israeli troops opened fire on two Palestinians preparing a car bomb killing one and wounding another, the military said.
Israeli troops also arrested a Palestinian Cabinet minister in Ramallah, Palestinian security officials said.
