At least three Palestinian Authority gunmen were killed, with over a dozen others wounded Tuesday morning when Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorist forces clashed with IDF ground troops in south-central Gaza. No soldiers were injured.

PA media put the number of dead at four, including the mother of a Hamas terrorist, and reported that the terrorists were hit by an Israel Air Force gunship. IDF officials confirmed the use of air power in the engagement, which took place in Khan Younis. However, military sources also reported that there was a gun battle between ground
IDF officials confirmed the use of air power in the engagement.
troops and the jihadist forces.

Approximately 100 PA terror suspects were apprehended and one suicide belt of explosives was found in the continuing counter-terrorist operation near the site of demolished Gush Katif communities.  The troops are searching for a network of tunnels used by terrorists to stage attacks and transfer weapons.

The return to central Gaza comes exactly two years after the government and military officers vowed that Israel never again would enter the area following the expulsion of Jewish residents and the surrender of the land to the PA.

In other operations, IDF troops arrested 13 wanted Palestinian Authority terrorists late Monday night during routine counter-terrorism activities. General Security Services (GSS) agents took custody of the fugitives, who were caught in locations throughout Judea and Samaria.

Police also announced on Monday that they arrested five Arab residents of Jerusalem for ties to terrorist groups. The five were involved in a May, 2007 shooting attack on two security guards near Jerusalem's Armon HaNatziv neighborhood. The terrorists who carried out the attack, two members of Hamas, were killed, while the guards were both wounded.

One of the five men arrested was Ma’anan Khalaila, who is accused of purchasing the weapons used in the attack. The other men, who are all in their 20s and all from the same village as Khalaila, are accused of involvement in the illegal weapons trade as well. Their names have not yet been released.

Stoning Attack Injures Disabled Boy
A disabled boy from Jerusalem was lightly wounded on Monday evening in a rock-throwing attack. A group of PA Arabs threw heavy stones at the family car as it passed near Halhul, south of Jerusalem. One of the projectiles smashed through the front windshield, lightly wounding the child. The family was assisted by security officers from nearby Kiryat Arba and the child was treated at the scene.

Similar attacks were reported near the Arab village Beit Omer, between Gush Etzion and Hevron, also south of Jerusalem. No injuries were reported in those incidents.

The area connecting Gush Etzion and Hevron is the site of frequent rock attacks on Israeli motorists.