Palestinians: IDF kills youth near Gaza border

Hamas government officials say 18-year-old shot dead by Israeli troops near security fence. IDF confirms incident

Elior Levy פורסם: 16.08.11, 23:20

Palestinian sources in the Gaza Strip reported Tuesday that an 18-year-old Palestinian was killed by IDF fire in central Gaza Strip near the border fence. The IDF said he was shot after he approached the fence.

 

Gaza Strip medical services spokesman Adham Abu Salmiyeh said that an ambulance evacuated the youth's body and that his identity remains unknown.

 

 

The IDF Spokesperson’s Unit told the French news agency that soldiers fired at a suspect who approached the border fence.

 

The IDF carried out strikes in the Gaza Strip after armed Palestinians fired a grad rocket that exploded near Beersheba Monday night. The IDF said one Palestinian militant was killed in the strike and two others were seriously wounded.

 

In spite of the recent escalation in the south, it has recently been reported that there was progress with regards to efforts to release captive soldier Gilad Shalit.

 

A delegation of senior Hamas members, headed by politburo chief Khaled Mashaal, arrived in Cairo Tuesday – following reports by the London-based Al-Hayat newspaper that the third round of negotiations between Israel and Hamas over a prisoner exchange deal is expected to begin in the Egyptian capital.

 

Meanwhile, a senior Hamas official said that Israel has become more flexible in its negotiation stance.