Tensions rose on Tuesday after an Israeli operation to blow up a tunnel from the Gaza Strip killed seven Palestinian militants in one of the deadliest incidents since a devastating 2014 war.
The seven men, from the armed wings of Gaza’s rulers Hamas and allied group Islamic Jihad, were killed on Monday when Israel blew up the tunnel it said had crossed into its territory and was intended for attacks.
They were being buried on Tuesday in their respective neighbourhoods in the Gaza Strip.
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Hamas leader Ismail Haniya appeared at a funeral in central Gaza attended by a few thousand people, witnesses said, while senior Hamas figure Khalil al-Hayya spoke at one in the southern part of the strip.
Israel said it had been monitoring the digging of the tunnel for an unspecified length of time and was forced to act after “the grave and unacceptable violation of Israeli sovereignty”.
It said the operation was carried out on the Israeli side of the border and stressed it was not seeking a further escalation.
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No tunnel opening had been found on the Israeli side of the border. It had come from the vicinity of the city of Khan Younis in the Gaza Strip, Israel’s military said.
The operation comes at a sensitive time, with rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas pursuing a reconciliation accord aimed at ending their 10-year rift.
Hamas is due to hand over control of the enclave’s borders to the Palestinian Authority on Wednesday under the deal mediated by Egypt and signed on October 12.
It is due to return the Gaza Strip to full PA control by December 1. Both Mr. Haniya and Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah spoke of ensuring the reconciliation pact remains on track.