A Hamas operative was killed in an IAF air strike in Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza late Monday night, according to Palestinian sources, while several others were wounded, they said. The Hamas man, Ismail al-Masri, 19, was a member of the Izzadin al-Kassam, the group's military wing. A short while later, IAF aircraft hit a building at the Islamic University in Gaza city early Tuesday, Palestinians said. Black smoke rose from the building, set on fire in the attack. No one was hurt. The military had no comment. The university is considered a Hamas stronghold. The building, where the Hamas-dominated student council meets, was heavily damaged.
Earlier Monday the IDF stepped up its offensive on against Hamas terror infrastructure and sent ground forces into the northern Gaza Strip and troops into the terror group's charity offices in the West Bank in moves aimed at escalating the pressure on the kidnappers of Cpl. Gilad Shalit. Senior officers said the military operations to rescue Shalit would continue as planned despite an ultimatum issued Monday morning by Palestinian terror groups behind the abduction of the soldier last week.