Israel pounds Gaza after deadly attacks near Eilat
The Israeli military carries out air strikes over the Gaza Strip in retaliation for a series of deadly attacks in southern Israel.
At least six people, including a senior militant, were killed in the air strikes, the
The attacks come in the wake of promises by Israeli officials that a strong response would be delivered to attacks on vehicles near Eilat left seven dead.
At the time, Israeli officials claimed Gazan militants were responsible, while Gaza's Hamas government denied involvement.
The retaliatory Israeli air strike hit a house in the town of Rafah.
Palestinian sources said that four members of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), a faction in Gaza that is loyal to Hamas but sometimes operates separately, had been killed in the air strikes, including the group's head, Kamal al-Nairab.
PRC military chief Immad Hammad and the son of the owner of the house were also among those killed.
After the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that those killed were responsible for the attacks earlier in the day near Eilat.
"The people who gave the order to murder our people and hid in Gaza are no longer among the living," he said in a televised address. "If anyone thinks the state of Israel will resign itself to this, they are wrong."
The PRC denied involvement in the attacks in Israel, Reuters reported.
Further air strikes took place in the early hours of Friday morning.
The attacks near Eilat, a southern resort city, began when gunmen opened fire on a bus.
Israeli officials said at least two other vehicles were then hit nearby - one by a rocket and one by an explosive device.
They said that the attacks left seven Israelis dead and that a number of gunmen were killed in an ensuing firefight.
In response, Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said: "The real source of the terror is in Gaza and we will act against them with full force and determination."
Hamas, which governs Gaza, denied responsibility, and said it would retaliate if Israel attacked.
"We will not stand handcuffed and we will spearhead resistance to the occupation," Hamas official Salah Al-Bardaweel was quoted as saying.
The US, the EU and the UN condemned the attacks in Israel.
"We condemn the brutal terrorist attacks in southern Israel today in the strongest terms," the White House said in a statement.
A UN spokesman said Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon was "concerned at the risk of escalation and calls for all to act with restraint".
