Palestinian militants killed in Gaza Strip

Israeli air strikes have killed six Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, including Hamas men who are said to have recently returned from training in Syria or Iran.

Five of the militants, who were senior members of the Islamist Hamas movement that controls the area, were killed when an air attack hit the van in which they were travelling near the southern town of Khan Younis.

Local residents say the militants returned home after Hamas breached the border with Egypt, thereby defying an Israeli blockade of the territory of 1.5 million people.

But a spokesman for Hamas's Izz el-Deen al Qassam Brigades denied they had travelled outside the Gaza Strip.

After the breach Egypt closed the border but allowed Palestinians who had crossed into its territory to return to the Gaza Strip.

This has lead Israel's military intelligence chief to claim that dozens of Gaza militants who had gone "primarily to Syria but also Iran for training in various areas of terror expertise" had taken advantage of the open border to return home.

An Israeli army spokeswoman said the air strike was a joint operation by the military and the Shin bet intelligence service.

Israel makes frequent attacks in Gaza in a bid to reduce cross-border rocket attacks by militants.

But a Hamas official called the strike on the van an Israeli "assassination".

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