Israeli shells killed six people and wounded several others in the Gaza Strip yesterday, including two members of the same family who were travelling on a donkey cart when they were hit, Palestinian witnesses said.

The two killed by a shell which hit the donkey cart were a 60-year-old woman and her 12-year-old grandson, medics said.

Three other Palestinians were killed while standing outside an apartment building in the northern Gaza neighbourhood of Beit Lahiya. Two were civilians and the third was an off-duty police officer, residents said.

An Israeli tank shell fired at a housing block later yesterday killed a five-year-old girl and wounded three other children in the area, medics said.

121 Palestinians Killed in One Month

Israel has killed around 121 Palestinians in a nearly month-long offensive in Gaza to force fighters to release a captured soldier and halt rocket fire on Israeli cities.

Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh urged visiting US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to force Israel to end its nearly month-old offensive.

"All that we ask the American administration is to take a moral stance toward the Palestinian people, and the Palestinian suffering and to bear its responsibility as a superpower in this world," Haniyeh said in an interview. He called on America "to restrain the Israeli aggression and stop it".

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