Jerusalem: Six Palestinians were killed in Gaza yesterday as the Israeli army poured forces into the northern part of the Strip. Israel said it was setting up a nine-kilometre buffer zone aimed at pushing rocket-firing militants out of range of towns inside the Jewish state, writes Peter Hirschberg in Jerusalem.
Palestinians reported dozens of tanks and armoured vehicles moving into northern Gaza, while troops set up encampments on the edge of the Strip, signalling that they planned to stay for an extended period. The thrust into Gaza followed a decision on Thursday night by Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon and his security cabinet to launch an extensive ground operation to stop the firing of the makeshift rockets. The move followed the deaths on Wednesday of two children, killed by one of the Qassam missiles, as they have been dubbed by Hamas, in the southern town of Sderot.
The six deaths yesterday brought to 37 the number of Palestinians killed since the operation, codenamed "Days of Reckoning", began three days ago. Five Israelis, including the two children, two soldiers and a settler, have also been killed in this period.
Both sides buried their dead yesterday. In Gaza, some 30,000 people joined funeral processions, while in Israel several thousand mourners attended the Sderot funeral of the two children - both of Ethiopian immigrant parents.
The military operation continued to focus yesterday on the densely populated Jabalya refugee camp, the largest in Gaza and an area from where militants have been firing their Qassam rockets into Israel. A missile fired by an Israeli aircraft killed two Hamas men whom the military said were planning to fire rockets.
A few hours later, three Palestinians were killed by another missile in the camp. Witnesses said all three were civilians; the army insisted it had targeted a cell planting bombs against Israeli troops. Another man was shot dead in the camp by troops.
Palestinian leaders have called for international intervention to halt the Israeli operation. Palestinian Prime Minister Mr Ahmed Korei called Israel's actions in the Jabalya camp "state terror that deliberately targets civilians".
Despite the army's efforts to push the rockets out of range, militants still managed to fire a Qassam into Israel yesterday. The rocket landed in an open area in the town of Sderot and did not cause any casualties or damage.
Defence Minister Mr Shaul Mofaz, who visited the Strip yesterday, said the operation was meant to send a clear message to militants that Israel would not be forced out of Gaza.
"It is important to make clear to the other side that we will not tolerate terrorist actions or a retreat under fire," he said.
The foray into the camp of some 100,000 is the first time troops have thrust deep into Jabalya since the Intifada uprising erupted four years ago. Israel fears getting bogged down in the teeming camp which has for years been a hotbed of militancy.
But the continued rocket fire has put pressure on Mr Sharon to act and has fuelled criticism of his plan to evacuate all 21 Israeli settlements in Gaza by next year. The Prime Minister's critics on the right say a unilateral pull-out would embolden armed groups like Hamas who want to present Israel's exit from Gaza as a victory.
But some of those who support the plan point to Lebanon - Israel withdrew from south Lebanon in May 2000 after an 18-year occupation - as an example of a successful unilateral pull-out.
The Israel-Lebanon border has been largely quiet since the Israeli withdrawal.