Four Palestinian fighters killed in Gaza explosion as Israel continues bombardment of besieged Palestinian territory

Four Palestinian fighters killed in Gaza explosion as Israel continues bombardment of besieged Palestinian territory
An explosion in the besieged Gaza Strip has killed four fighters from the Islamic Jihad movement.
2 min read
The four fighters belonged to the Islamic Jihad movement [Getty]
Four Islamic Jihad Palestinian fighters from the Al-Quds Brigades were killed in an explosion in the besieged Gaza Strip on Monday, according to reports.

The four fighters were identified as Iyad Jamal Al-Jadi, Moataz Amer Al-Moubayed, Yahya Farid Al-Moubayed, and Yaqoub Zaidia, Arabi21 reported.

The group was targeted after an explosion rocked the Shejaiya neighbourhood in the east of Gaza City, amid heightened tensions with Israel.

It is unclear what caused the explosion, though sources said it took place during an inspection and maintenance operation, according to the Arabi21 report.

The deaths come as Israel continued to bomb Gaza on an almost daily since 6 August after balloons fitted with fire bombs, or, less frequently, rockets were launched from the Palestinian enclave.

Israel has also tightened its 13-year blockade of Gaza's two million inhabitants.

It has banned Gaza fishermen from going to sea and closed its goods crossing with the territory, prompting the closure of Gaza's sole power plant for want of fuel.

On Monday, Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip, in a statement called on the international community and "decision-makers in the region" to "break their silence to bring an end" to the Gaza blockade.

The movement also called the closure of the Kerem Shalom crossing a "crime against humanity" and called on the international community and "decision-makers in the region" to "break their silence to bring an end" to the blockade.

Hamas also said that the normalisation of relations between Israel and the UAE helps "maintain crimes and violations" against the Palestinians.

An Egyptian delegation has been trying to broker a return to an informal truce.

Read also: UAE has 'no right' to speak for Palestinians, Abbas says

"During the day, explosive and arson balloons were launched from the Gaza Strip into Israel," an army statement said.

"In response ... fighter jets, tanks and aircraft struck military posts and underground infrastructure" belonging to Hamas in the southern Gaza Strip, it said.

Egypt has acted to calm repeated flare-ups of violence in recent years to prevent any repetition of the three wars Israel and Hamas have fought since 2008.

Agencies contributed to this report.

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