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IDF destroys buildings in Gaza townStructures overlooked site of Netzarim attack, Israel says
(CNN) -- Israeli forces destroyed three residential buildings late Saturday in El Zahara, Gaza, near a Jewish settlement that was the site of an attack a day before, Palestinian sources said. The sources -- located in Gaza City -- said they heard a loud explosion and that soon afterward Israel Defense Forces pulled out of the area. The incident came hours after the IDF warned residents in El Zahara to temporarily move as it prepared to destroy three abandoned buildings, which it described as observation posts for terrorist attacks on the Netzarim settlement in north-central Gaza. In a statement, the Israeli military said the targeted buildings were used in connection with terrorist activity, but according to Palestinian sources they belonged to the families of members of the Palestinian security forces. An IDF statement issued before the buildings were demolished said: "In the framework of the IDF activity, the IDF will destroy three abandoned structures which serve as a lookout point on the community of Netzarim and the roads leading to the community, as well as IDF soldiers in the area. This is done for carrying out terrorist activities. "These three structures have been used as observation points in the last few weeks in advance of the attacks on Friday in Netzarim which resulted in the killing of three IDF soldiers." The Palestinian sources in Gaza City and Terje Roed-Larsen, the U.N.'s special envoy for the Middle East, said the buildings were owned by families of Palestinian security personnel. "The destruction of these buildings ... is illegal," Roed-Larsen said in a statement. "Destroying property as a punitive measure is a clear violation of the rules of international law." The IDF and the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the buildings were abandoned. Palestinian sources in Gaza told CNN that the buildings, which were under construction, were inhabited by very few people. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat told CNN in a phone interview from his home in Jericho, West Bank, that the action has left at least 180 families homeless. Erakat urged President Bush to take a stronger role in the Mideast peace process, and called on Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to rethink the operations. "This is a crime, a war crime," Erakat said. "It's a good thing that people are out of their apartments on the eve of Ramadan." "This will bring you no peace and no security," he said. "With such attacks you are bringing about the destruction of the Palestinian moderate camp." Three Israeli soldiers -- two women and a man -- were killed and two were wounded early Friday in Netzarim when Palestinian gunmen opened fire on them after infiltrating the settlement, the IDF said. (Full story) In a leaflet distributed in Gaza, two Palestinian militant groups -- Islamic Jihad and Hamas -- claimed responsibility for the attack. Both groups are considered terrorist organizations by the United States and Israel. The IDF said its soldiers killed one of the gunmen. The Palestinian groups said the Palestinian who was killed in the shootout was a member of Izzedine al Qassam, the military wing of Hamas. Hamas is a Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist organization. Izzedine al Qassam has acknowledged terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers. Islamic Jihad is a militant group dedicated to the creation of an Islamic Palestinian state and the destruction of Israel. It has claimed responsibility for many suicide bombings against Israelis.
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