The leader of the armed wing of the radical Islamic Jihad faction was killed on Wednesday in an Israeli air strike on a car in Gaza City, Palestinian medical sources said.
Khaled al-Dahduh, the leader of the al-Quds Brigades in the Gaza Strip and West Bank, was killed when the vehicle in which he was travelling exploded in the strike, the sources said.
He was also known by his nom de guerre Abu al-Walid.
Witnesses said a rocket fired by an Israel drone slammed into the car as it was travelling near the Gaza offices of the Palestinian finance ministry.
There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military.
Islamic Jihad, which boycotted a Palestinian general election last January in which its larger rival Hamas won a massive victory, has been behind the past six suicide bombings in Israel.
Al-Dahduh’s death brings to 4 969 the number of people killed since the outbreak of the Palestinian uprising in 2000. Most of the victims have been Palestinian.
On Sunday, Israeli Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz vowed to intensify reprisals against Palestinian militants who carry out rocket attacks on the Jewish state.
One such rocket fired from northern Gaza exploded in southern Israel earlier on Wednesday, causing no casualties or damage. — AFP
