Hamas claims Gaza 'victory' as troops pull back

Gaza: Israeli troops pulled out of the Gaza Strip on Monday after days of fighting that killed more than 100 people and drew an appeal from Washington to end violence and rescue peace talks with the Palestinians.

The Hamas fighters who control the coastal enclave declared "victory" and vowed to continue firing rockets into Israel. But the Israeli government declared it had achieved its objective of deterring attacks, which have disrupted life in border towns.

At dawn, as Gaza residents streamed out of homes where they had been pinned for days by the heavy fighting, a spokesman for the Hamas armed wing said it would continue firing rockets into Israel. "The enemy has been defeated," he said.

Senior Hamas official Sami Abu Zuhri said: "Gaza will always be a graveyard for the occupation forces."

On the eve of a visit by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, Israel had been under pressure from its ally in Washington to halt the violence after Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas suspended US-backed peace talks in protest at the bloodshed.