Israeli forces kill 3 in West Bank and Gaza as fighting flares again

Israel's air force hit Islamic Jihad targets in Gaza for a second day running on Wednesday, as areas around the enclave braced for a response from the armed Palestinian faction.

The military said it had hit rocket launch sites belonging to the group, as a series of blasts rocked different points including what witnesses described as a training camp in the northern part of the Gaza Strip and an open area in the south.

At least one man was killed and one wounded in the strikes, medical officials said.

The attacks came a day after the military launched a series of strikes it said were aimed at senior leaders of Islamic Jihad responsible for planning attacks against Israel. At least 10 civilians were killed in the strikes as well as three senior commanders.

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"We have no intention of waiting until they launch (rockets)," Israeli security cabinet minister Avi Dichter told Kan radio. "If launches can be prevented or disrupted, if launch crews can be hit - all of this ultimately creates deterrence."

Islamic Jihad has promised to retaliate for the strikes but has so far not fired any rockets. Meanwhile, many residents in areas in southern Israel around Gaza have been evacuated.

Dawoud Shehab, an Islamic Jihad spokesperson, said the group would inevitably retaliate and the delay was "tactical".

"The resistance decides the timing of the response in line with its tactics and calculations because we see that the response must match the size of the crime," he said.

Earlier, Israeli forces killed two Palestinians who opened fire on them in Qabatiya, in the occupied West Bank. Islamic Jihad claimed the two as members.

The army said the two Palestinians fired on troops from a car and were shot dead. An assault rifle was recovered from the vehicle, it said, adding that there were no Israeli casualties.

In Gaza, businesses and schools remained closed, Israel kept its two commercial and people crossings with Gaza closed. The move would stop the entry of goods, fuel and humanitarian aid as well as patients, who receive treatment in hospitals in the West Bank and Israel.