Israeli forces blew up bridges and battled Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip this afternoon in swift response to a rocket strike on a town near Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's ranch days before Israel's general election.
In Cairo, Palestinian factions held landmark talks last night on an Egyptian proposal for a one-year unilateral cease-fire of attacks on Israelis, but chances of agreement in sessions expected to continue today and tomorrow looked slim.
Constant violence in a 28-month-old Palestinian uprising for statehood has fueled support in Israel for the tough security policies of Mr Sharon's right-wing Likud party, forecast to romp to victory in Tuesday's parliamentary poll.
Hours after five rockets slammed into the Israeli town of Sderot, down the road from Sharon's Sycamore Ranch, an armored force pushed into Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip. Police said a woman was slightly injured in the Sderot attack.
At least one Palestinian was killed and 20 Palestinians were hurt in fighting during the overnight Israeli incursion, local security sources said. An army spokesman said its forces pulled out of Beit Hanoun early today and suffered no casualties.
The soldiers blew up four bridges that connected Beit Hanoun to Gaza City to the south. In a statement, the army said the bridges were used by "terrorist cells" that launched the Qassam rockets.
Dozens of mourners marched in a funeral procession in Gaza's Jabalya refugee camp for Hassan Youssef Fayad, killed in the Israeli operation in Beit Hanoun.
"In blood and spirit, we shall redeem you, martyr," the crowd chanted as Fayad's body, draped in a Palestinian flag, was carried through the camp's streets.