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Gunmen escape Gaza mosque siege Gaza gunmen flee in human shield
(about 1 hour later)
The Israeli army says the siege at a mosque in the town of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza Strip is over. A siege at a mosque in the Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanoun has ended after Israeli forces entered the compound and found no-one there, Israel's army says.
A spokesman said Israeli forces had entered the compound and there was no-one inside. An Israeli military spokesman told the BBC they believe the dozen Palestinian gunmen escaped by mingling with a crowd of women who had formed a human shield.
He told the BBC that gunmen who were holed up in the mosque had escaped when a crowd of women approached it. The women went to the mosque after an appeal on Hamas radio. Two were reportedly killed by Israeli gunfire.
A tense standoff developed after Israeli forces surrounded the mosque, where Palestinian gunmen had taken refuge along with dozens of others. Israel entered Beit Hanoun on Wednesday to stop rocket attacks, it said.
Israel's military entered and sealed of Beit Hanoun on Wednesday seeking, it said, to stop rockets being fired into Israel. Rocket attacks by militants against towns close to the Gaza border, including Sderot and Ashkelon, have continued since Israel pulled its troops out of Gaza in 2005.
Twenty Palestinians and an Israeli soldier have died in the operation, one of the biggest in the strip in recent months. Bulldozer assault
Human shield In one of the biggest operations in the Gaza Strip in recent months, Israeli troops moved in and sealed the town off.
Hamas radio has reported that the all the militants in the mosque had escaped and were uninjured. Twenty Palestinians and an Israeli soldier died in the fighting that ensued. Many of the 20 Palestinians killed were gunmen, but a four-year-old boy died from his wounds overnight.
Press despair over Gaza raid Gaza's rocket threatPress despair over Gaza raid Gaza's rocket threat
There have been reports of Israeli soldiers firing on the groups of women who approached the mosque, after an appeal on Hamas radio, to form a human shield. Two women are reported to have been killed. A tense standoff developed after Israeli forces surrounded the mosque, where Palestinian gunmen had taken refuge along with about 60 others.
Witnesses said bulldozers demolished a wall as the Israelis tried to force those inside to surrender and there have been exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and the gunmen. Witnesses said bulldozers demolished a wall as the Israelis tried to force those inside to surrender and there were exchanges of fire between Israeli forces and the gunmen.
In Gaza City overnight an Israeli air strike killed four Hamas militants. However, following an appeal on Hamas radio, over 100 women approached the compound in groups.
The four were travelling in a vehicle that was hit by a missile, Hamas and medical sources said. There have been reports that the Israeli soldiers fired on the groups of women. Two women are reported to have been killed.
A local commander of Hamas' military wing was reportedly among the casualties. Hamas radio has since reported that all of the militants in the mosque had escaped and were uninjured.
But an Israeli military source told the BBC's Matthew Price in Jerusalem that the operation was not going as well as hoped. In other developments:
Three days of violence
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  • An Israeli air strike on Gaza City kills four Hamas militants, with a local commander of Hamas' military wing reportedly among the casualties
Many of the 20 Palestinians killed in three days of violence have been gunmen, but a four-year-old boy died from his wounds overnight.
  • The Palestinian Housing Minister is arrested by Israeli troops in the West Bank town of Ramallah
    • On Thursday, seven Palestinians were killed in northern Gaza.
  • An elderly Palestinian woman is killed in the West Bank town of Bethlehem during an Israeli army arrest raid.
    • Both the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniya have described the Beit Hanoun operation as a massacre.Both the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and Prime Minister Ismail Haniya have described the Beit Hanoun operation as a massacre.
    The Israeli army confirmed that one of its soldiers had been killed on Wednesday.
    Israeli forces have made regular incursions into Gaza and the West Bank following the capture of an Israeli soldier, Cpl Gilad Shalit, in a cross-border raid by Palestinian militants on 25 June.Israeli forces have made regular incursions into Gaza and the West Bank following the capture of an Israeli soldier, Cpl Gilad Shalit, in a cross-border raid by Palestinian militants on 25 June.
    More than 300 Palestinians have been killed in army operations since then, according to Israeli human rights group B'Tselem.More than 300 Palestinians have been killed in army operations since then, according to Israeli human rights group B'Tselem.
    Rocket attacks by militants against towns close to the Gaza border, including Sderot and Ashkelon, have continued since Israel pulled its troops out of Gaza in 2005.