At least seven Palestinians and six Israeli soldiers were killed Tuesday in the Gaza Strip. The occupation troops were killed after Palestinian resistance activists destroyed their armored personnel carrier. Helicopter attack An Israeli helicopter fired missiles towards a car in the Gaza Strip Tuesday afternoon, killing one person and wounding at least five others, witnesses said. The passengers in the car in the Shajaiyeh district of Gaza City were not wounded. A passerby identified as Yusuf Kamal Hijazi, 18, was killed. **Israeli APC destroyed*** The copter strike came hours after six Israeli soldiers were killed when a powerful bomb planted by Palestinian fighters, exploded under the armored personnel carrier (APC) in which they were travelling. The explosive charge was detonated near the carrier during an Israeli raid on the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City. The explosion directly hit the Israeli vehicle, setting it ablaze. The military wings of Islamic Jihad and Hamas - the Al-Quds Brigades and Iz a Din al-Kassam - claimed responsibility for the attack. Hamas filmed the incident and Arab TV station aired it as well as the charred body parts of the dead Israeli soldiers. Hamas added its fighters ambushed the vehicle, stopping it with "Al Battar" - an anti-tank missile - at a spot where they had previously planted bombs. According to the Islamic Jihad website, the resistance fighters used 50 kilograms of explosives in the attack. It added that the incident took place at 0625 am [local time]. Statements by several Palestinian groups, including Islamic Jihad and Hamas said they were holding body parts of the Israeli soldiers who were killed in the attack. Hamas fighters displayed pieces of metal and bits of human remains they said they collected after the attack. "We possess the remains of your bodies that were thrown into the streets of Gaza. We have our demands to hand them over to the Zionist occupier," said a joint statement by Islamic Jihad and Hamas. Following the attack, the Israeli army split the Gaza Strip into three sections, sealed off the Zeitoun neighborhood and sent in massive reinforcements to assist in the operation to recover the soldiers' bodies and the burned-out APC. Israeli sources stated troops would remain in Zeitoun neighborhood until they recover the bodies. Israeli Prime Minister summoned his Security Cabinet for a special meeting later Tuesday. Security officials preparing recommendations to the Cabinet said they would propose pinpoint attacks against Palestinian groups. Sharon told parliament that Israel would strike back hard. "We will not stop fighting him (the enemy) and hitting him, wherever he acts and hides," Sharon said. **Seven Palestinians dead*** All in all, at least seven Palestinians were killed and more than 110 were wounded during the Israeli raid on Gaza City. Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qurei accused the Israeli military of trying to sabotage all peace hopes. "Each time there is hope for peace and for the resumption of the peace talks, Israel insists on going into places and escalating the situation," he said. The Israeli army said that troops entered the city in an operation aimed at the "terrorist infrastructure" in the city. "A force has entered the [Zeitoun neighborhood] and we are carrying out a pinpoint operation against the terrorist infrastructure," an Israeli military source said early Tuesday. Witnesses said Palestinian fighters rushed to the scene of the night-time incursion and that fierce battles erupted. An Israeli helicopter early Tuesday also fired a missile at a group of Palestinians near a petrol station, killing one Palestinian and wounding some 14 others, the witnesses said. The Palestinian victims in Zeitoun neighborhood were identified as Fadi Ibrahim Nassar, 18, Amar U'ud al Jarjawi, 30, a Hamas fighter, Hazem Maleka, 18, Rami Jaafar, 15, Ahmed al Swerki, 18 and Muhammad Farah Adas, 20. The operation started when Israeli undercover forces sped into Zeitoun in civilian taxis and jeeps, the witnesses said. They were later joined by tanks and armored personnel carriers. Israeli tanks destroyed al-Rahman Mosque and turned it into a military post, WAFA reported. Two military bulldozers took part in the attack and razed vast areas of agricultural land, Palestinian security sources said. Israel Radio reported that the force was searching for workshops where Qassam rockets used by Hamas against Jewish settlements in Gaza Strip. Troops surrounded homes belonging to activists from the Hamas and Islamic Jihad groups and blew off the doors to the entrances of several buildings, where they set up rooftop observation posts, witnesses said. In another part of Gaza Strip, several Israeli tanks and bulldozers entered the Rafah refugee camp on the Egyptian border and tore down a structure, residents said. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Hamas Abdel-Aziz al-Rantissi (L) with Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin (R), in Gaza, February 7, 2000. (REUTERS)