New Israeli incursion into Gaza Strip
( 2001-05-11 14:47 ) (7 )

The Israeli army entered the Palestinian-controlled Gaza Strip with an incursion of 500 metres early Friday and destroyed a police building, Palestinian police sources said.

Security officials said the Israeli army also barred all Palestinian traffic on one of the main highways linking the north and the south of the Gaza Strip, effectively cutting the enclave in two.

The incursion was made in the south of the Gaza Strip near Deir el-Balah and the site of several Jewish settlements.

Palestinian sources said there was an exchange of fire, but did not say if there were any casualties.

On Thursday the Israeli army staged four incursions into the Gaza Strip to hit Palestinian police positions.

Overnight Thursday, the Israeli army also fired six shells into a post of Force-17 -- Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's bodyguard -- inside the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian police official said.

Raids into areas of the West Bank and Gaza Strip agreed to be under exclusive Palestinian control, usually to destroy positions the Israelis say have been used to fire on their troops and civilians, have become almost a daily occurrence since the beginning of this month.