A top Islamic Jihad political leader vowed on Thursday that Israel would face ”severe” reprisals after its army killed 15 people in the Gaza Strip, most in a vicious gun battle.
”The enemy must brace itself for our fighters’ response that will be as severe as the massacre they have committed,” Abdallah al-Shami told reporters during the funeral of five of those killed in Wednesday’s fighting.
He said security measures taken by Israel to prevent Palestinian attacks ”will not deter our fighters from reaching Israel and forcing losses on the enemy”.
About 5 000 Palestinians, including hundreds of masked gunmen, joined the funeral processions in Gaza City.
The crowd chanted slogans blasting Israel ”aggression” and called for suicide bombings insids the Jewish state.
Three Islamic Jihad militants and the son of Palestinian Yasser Arafat’s Fatah movement general secretary in the Gaza Strip were among the five buried.
Jihad’s bigger rival, Hamas, has also called on its armed wing to launch large-scale suicide attacks against Israel. Three of its members were among the 12 Palestinians killed on Wednesday in a gun battle in the east of Gaza City.
Three other Palestinians were also killed during an army raid into the Rafah refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip.
Another Hamas activist was shot dead in the Ramallah region of the West Bank on Thursday.
Israeli security forces have been placed on high alert in readiness for revenge attacks from the two Islamic groups.
Extra police officers could be seen on the streets in the main cities, manning metal barricades where motorists were being hauled over. — Sapa-AFP