Gaza smugglers killed, missing as Israeli airstrikes target underground tunnels

Gaza smugglers dead, missing in Israeli strikes

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip — Israeli aircraft bombed three Gaza tunnels, killing two Palestinians and wounding a third, Hamas security officials said Sunday.

Two more Palestinians were missing following the late Saturday airstrikes, which the Israeli military said was retaliation for Hamas shooting attacks.

The officials identified all five men as smugglers working in one of the many tunnels used to ferry goods under the Gaza-Egypt border. They spoke on condition of anonymity because authorities had not officially released the information.

The Israeli military said aircraft attacked two smuggling tunnels and a third that was intended to allow militants to infiltrate into Israel. The military said the strikes were retaliation for attacks against Israelis over the last week.

Last week, two Hamas attacks targeting Israeli cars on West Bank roads killed four residents of West Bank settlements and wounded two others. The spike in violence came as Israelis and Palestinians relaunched direct peace negotiations in Washington after a hiatus of nearly two years.

Israel usually retaliates promptly for attacks, often by bombing smuggling tunnels. The response appeared to be delayed this time to avoid disrupting the talks, which began after months of diplomatic efforts by the U.S.

The strikes also followed the launch of a rocket into Israel from Gaza by militants earlier Saturday. There were no injuries in that attack.

Both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas expressed a desire to reach an agreement, but gaps remain wide. The two leaders are slated to meet again in Egypt next week.

The most recent Hamas attacks served as a reminder that militants can try again to sabotage negotiations, as they have done repeatedly in the 17 years since the signing of the first Israeli-Palestinian agreement in 1993.

Hamas, which rejects any compromise with Israel, overran Gaza in 2007, wresting it from Abbas and leaving him only with limited governing power in the West Bank under Israel’s overall security control.

Since the takeover, Abbas’ forces have cracked down on Hamas in the West Bank. Following last week’s deadly shooting attack, Palestinian security forces rounded up hundreds of Hamas activists.

Abbas’ prime minister, Salam Fayyad, said he would do his utmost to prevent further attacks.

“We believe this is dangerous to our people and we will not permit it,” he said.

Fayyad also said he believes chances for success of the talks were slim.

“The elements of failure for these negotiations are much more than the elements of success,” Fayyad told reporters late Saturday. He did not elaborate.

The talks will face a major test at the end of September, when an Israeli slowdown in settlement construction is scheduled to end. Netanyahu has given no indication that the slowdown will be extended, but Palestinians say they will pull out of talks if it is not.

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Associated Press Writer Mohammed Daraghmeh in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed to this report.