An Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip has killed a Palestinian fighter and wounded another, after they fired mortar shells at Israeli tanks involved in an incursion near the southern town of Khan Yunis, Palestinian medics and eyewitnesses have said.

Gaza security sources said that Israeli tanks had entered into east Khan Yunis in a village called Qarara, opening fire at civilian houses in the area early on Sunday.
The dead man was named as Kamel Qarara, 25, a member of the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas movement. The wounded man, not immediately named, was also a member of the group.

The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said the men were killed during a confrontation with the Israeli tanks in Qarara.

Gaza security sources said an Israeli drone had fired a rocket at the group of fighters.

The exchange took place after a three-day lull, after Israeli airstrikes had killed a total of four Palestinians.

PHOTO CAPTION

A file photo shows Israeli soldiers taking position on tanks along the border with the Gaza Strip in southern Israel, in 2011.

Al-Jazeera