Israel Escalates Violence, Killing 16 Palestinians In Air Raids

Gaza City, March 11, IRNA – Israel escalated violence against Palestinians for the second day in eight air strikes overnight and Saturday, killing a dozen civilians in Gaza Strip. IRNA reporter in Gaza City said that 16 Palestinians were killed in a series of Israeli bombardment of Gaza Strip overnight and Saturday morning. He said that tens of thousands of Palestinian mourners marched through the streets in funeral processions. They carried coffins of their loved ones chanting slogans such as 'revenge, revenge'. Palestinians said that they fired rockets into Israel to avenge the death of commander Zuhair al-Qaissi. He was the leader of the Popular Resistance Committees, a small group best known for the 2006 abduction of Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit. Schalit was freed last year in exchange for over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. Palestinian activists said they would continue rocket attacks, accusing Israel of shattering months of relative calm in the area. The Hamas government condemned the Israeli strikes, but, said that Hamas soldiers did not fire rockets at Israel. Retaliatory strikes between Israel and Palestinians are a routine occurrence along the Gaza border. But a flare-up of conflict has been rare since the 2009 war. Gaza health spokesman Adham Abu Salmia said some 20 more civilians were wounded by flying shrapnels from the exploding missiles, some of which landed in crowded civilian areas. Another civilian was critically injured when Israeli forces opened fire during the funeral of one of the victims. The most recent air strike targeted two Palestinian citizens on a motorbike in the border town of Bani Suheila in southeast Gaza, according to Adham Abu Salmia./end