9 Slain as Gaza Clashes Continue

Israeli forces killed at least nine Palestinians in the Gaza Strip on Friday and early today in clashes that mark the deadliest flare-up in weeks.

At least 18 people have died in military actions since Thursday morning, several of them civilians, Palestinian officials said.

Early today, Israeli aircraft fired missiles at Hamas fighters east of Gaza City, killing five. The Israeli military said gunmen had fired antitank missiles at troops that had moved into the area.

Three Hamas militants were killed Friday near Beit Lahiya when an Israeli aircraft fired a missile at the car in which they were riding.

The Israeli military said the car was loaded with homemade Kassam rockets the men planned to fire into Israel. Militants launched six Kassams a day earlier after an Israeli raid killed six people near the town of Khan Yunis, in southern Gaza.

Earlier Friday, Palestinian officials said a 32-year-old woman died after being hit by gunfire outside her home in Abasan, a village near Khan Yunis where Israeli forces have operated since Thursday. Israeli army officials said they were unaware of any shots hitting civilians. A military spokeswoman said soldiers had fired at two gunmen who approached, hitting both fighters and killing one.

Meanwhile, a 38-year-old man died of wounds suffered a night earlier during an Israeli missile strike on a house in the Shajaiyeh neighborhood of Gaza City. The strike targeted Ashraf Farwana, a senior Hamas militant, but he was not home.

Killed instead were his brother, Ayman, and an 8-year-old girl in an adjoining house.

Israel renewed military operations in Gaza after the June 25 capture of an Israeli soldier by Palestinian militants. The latest fighting has added to the turmoil in the impoverished coastal enclave, where factional clashes between the ruling Hamas movement and its main rival, Fatah, also are occurring.

At least 10 people were injured early Friday during a shootout between the rival groups in Beit Lahiya.

The encounter was apparently triggered by the fatal shooting of a Hamas militant the previous night by gunmen who appeared at his home. That shooting followed the slaying of a 30-year-old officer of the Palestinian intelligence service, which is loyal to Fatah.

Also Friday, a mob burned down a Gaza radio station affiliated with Fatah. The owner said the attackers were members of Hamas.

The two groups have been locked in a power struggle since Hamas won control of the government by defeating Fatah in parliamentary elections in January.

Talks aimed at forging a unity government have deadlocked over Hamas’ refusal to recognize Israel.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, of Fatah, and Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh, of Hamas, announced a tentative agreement last month but it fell apart almost immediately.

Officials in both factions hoped a new government lineup could help break a months-long international aid embargo against Hamas, which much of the West classifies as a terrorist group.

In other developments, Palestinians clashed with Israeli police at checkpoints leading to Jerusalem as they protested restrictions on Muslim prayers at the Al Aqsa mosque in the walled Old City. Officers fired stun grenades to disperse the crowd after youths hurled rocks, police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said.

Israel has barred men younger than 40 from attending Friday prayers at the mosque during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, citing security concerns. Arab leaders have decried the restrictions as a violation of religious freedom.

More than 150,000 worshipers attended Friday’s prayers.