Israeli forces shot dead Wael Hassanin, a senior Hamas local commander, on Tuesday during a gunbattle in a Gaza City neighborhood, Hamas said in a statement. Sa'adiya Haraj, a 70-year-old woman was also killed by the Israeli fire, Palestinian sources said.
Israeli troops and tanks moved into the Gaza Strip in two separate raids early Tuesday, clashing with Palestinian fighters in Gaza City, locals said. A column of some 30 tanks moved into Gaza City's Zeitoun district, they said.
A smaller Israeli force raided Beit Lahiya in the northern Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, a rocket fired by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip hit an Israeli border town on Tuesday, critically wounding one person, the Israeli ambulance service said, according to Reuters.
The armed wing of Hamas said it launched two rockets at Sderot.
