Israeli tanks enter Gaza villages
Dozens of Israeli tanks entered three villages in southern Gaza and destroyed the house of a suspected militant, residents say.
Doctors at a clinic say four people were injured by Israeli gunfire during the raid on the villages about six miles east of the city of Khan Younis
The area is known as a stronghold of the militant Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine and the local Popular Resistance Front.
Residents say soldiers surrounded the house of a DFLP activist, ordered the family out and knocked down the structure with a bulldozers.
The Israeli military would say only that an operation is under way.
Israel has been implementing a policy of destroying the houses of suspected militants as a deterrent measure.
Palestinians and human rights groups have denounced the practice, saying it harms innocent relatives.
Residents say the tanks were firing in all directions. Politician Abdel Karim Abu Salah says Israeli forces were preventing ambulances from entering.
Witnesses say there were exchanges of fire between local gunmen and soldiers and a large explosion next to an Israeli tank, apparently a bomb planted by Palestinians. An Israeli military ambulance raced to the scene, a witness says.
