Israeli airstrikes kill 7 Hamas militants after border attack

Gaza City: Israel killed seven Hamas militants in a series of air strikes after the group detonated two jeeps packed with hundreds of kilograms of explosives at an Israeli crossing on the Gaza border.

Two of the militants were killed early on Sunday.

Hamas bombers attacked an Israeli-Gaza border crossing under the cover of fog on Saturday, detonating two jeeps made to look like Israeli military vehicles and packed with hundreds of pounds of explosives.

The twin blasts, just hours before the Jewish Passover holiday, wounded 13 Israeli soldiers in what Hamas said was an attempt to break the nearly yearlong blockade of the territory. Four Hamas assailants died, Israeli officials said.

An Israeli army commander said the Hamas operation was the most ambitious since Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, even though another planned attempt at the border was averted on Saturday. The attack was the fifth on a crossing by Gaza militants since last week, and Hamas threatened to target the passages again.

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak later visited the area. "When the time comes, Hamas will bear the consequences," Barak warned, in comments quoted by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz on its website.

Despite such attacks, Hamas has said it seeks a truce on the Gaza-Israel border, and Egypt has been trying to broker such a deal. Hamas' motives for its ostensibly contradictory actions were not clear.

On Saturday evening, another missile strike killed four Hamas militants east of Gaza City, Palestinian medics and security officials said. The Israeli military confirmed the strike, and said it targeted a group trying to launch rockets.

Hamas said three of its gunmen were killed on Saturday, but released a farewell video of four attackers. One of the faces was blocked out, suggesting he could still at large.

The video showed three vehicles driving off into the morning fog. The assailants posed for the camera, smiling and toting rifles.

Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said Hamas is showing disregard for the welfare of Gaza's residents by attacking the crossings.

"Israel has no illusions as to the true nature of Hamas and as to that organisation's extremist agenda," Regev said. "It is not an accident that the international community views Hamas as illegitimate and has officially declared Hamas a terrorist organisation."

Palestinian analyst Khalil Shaheen, a writer for the Palestinian daily Al Ayyam, said Hamas is apparently stepping up border attacks to remind those involved in a possible border deal that its interests have to be taken into account.