Israel downs Gaza drone; 4 Palestinians killed [View all]

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP-EXCITE

By PETER ENAV

JERUSALEM (AP) — The Israeli military said it downed a drone launched by Gaza militants on Monday, the first time it encountered an unmanned aircraft since the start of its offensive last week, as new Israeli airstrikes killed four more Palestinians in the coastal strip.

Israel began its campaign against militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza last Tuesday, saying it was responding to heavy rocket fire from the densely populated territory. The military says it has launched more than 1,300 airstrikes since then, while Palestinian militants have launched nearly 1,000 rockets at Israel.

The outbreak of violence followed the kidnappings and killings of three Israeli teenagers in the West Bank last month, as well as the subsequent kidnapping and killing of a Palestinian teenager in an apparent revenge attack, along with Israeli raids against Hamas militants and infrastructure in the West Bank.

The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza has said that 172 people died in Israeli air attacks, including dozens of civilians. That's without counting Monday's fatalities.

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Read more: http://apnews.excite.com/article/20140714/ml--israel-palestinians-aba58e2cd1.html

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Palestinians drive past a building destroyed by an Israeli strike on Friday, in Gaza City, Sunday, July 13, 2014. Thousands of Palestinian residents of the northern Gaza Strip fled their homes on Sunday and sought safety in U.N. shelters, heeding warnings from the Israeli military about impending plans to bomb the area in the sixth day of an offensive against Hamas that has killed more than 160 people. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis)