Israel, Abbas Both Aim At Hamas

Israeli Missiles Destroy Van, Palestinian Police Battle Militants

(CBS/AP)  Palestinian security forces and Hamas militants exchanged fire in a crowded Gaza City neighborhood on Friday, a sign that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas may finally be cracking down on militants, as Israel and the U.S. have demanded.

But the Israeli military didn't wait: It launched an air strike later Friday on a van carrying Hamas militants and a cache of homemade rockets in a Gaza City street, killing four people.

The strike destroyed the van, scattering shards of metal and body parts hundreds of yards away. The van was filled with homemade rockets, Palestinian security officials said.

Militants have fired volleys of rockets and mortars against Israeli targets in recent days. All told, militants killed six Israelis this week, five in a suicide bombing and one in a rocket attack Thursday.

The Israeli military said the helicopter missile attack targeted senior Hamas weapons manufacturers on their way to launching more rockets at Israeli targets.

Also Friday, two Hamas members were killed in an explosion in the West Bank, and area residents said Israeli helicopters had fired three or four missiles at the house. The Israeli military had no immediate comment.

The battle between Palestinian police and Hamas killed at least two people — possibly bystanders, a teenager and a child — and wounded 25 in some of the worst fighting among Palestinians in recent years. Palestinian troops were placed on high alert.