5 Israelis Killed in Palestinian Attack on Gaza Crossing.

By Ha'aretz & IsraelNationalNews.com

Israel Air Force aircraft struck a Hamas-linked target in the Gaza Strip late Thursday night, soon after Palestinian suicide bombers and gunmen attacked the Karni Crossing in the Strip, killing five Israelis and wounding four others.

Two suicide bombers detonated a 330-pound bomb adjacent to a wall between the Israeli and Palestinian sides of the commercial terminal at 10:50 p.m., then entered the Israeli side and set off their explosive belts, killing themselves in the blast. Other Palestinians subsequently opened fire on Israeli personnel at the crossing with mortars and light arms. Three of the wounded Israelis were in serious condition and one was in moderate condition, according to Magen David Adom ambulance teams. There have been reports that as many as 15 Israelis were wounded.

The attack, which came just four days after the election of Mahmoud Abbas, could be seen as a challenge to the new Palestinian Authority chairman, who has often condemned suicide bombings as harmful to the Palestinian cause. Significantly, three militant groups claimed joint responsibility for the attack, Hamas, the Popular Resistance Committees, and the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an offshoot of Abbas' Fatah movement.

Israel and Washington have said that the first test of Abbas as a leader will be his willingness and ability to rein in terror groups. The Sharon government has set strong PA action against terror as a pre-condition for resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.

Shortly after the bombing at Karni, witnesses said an Israeli helicopter fired missiles at a medical center in Dir al-Balah refugee camp run by an Islamic charity, Al Salah, with links to Hamas. There were no immediate reports of casualties in the air strike.

MDA teams managed to evacuate five casualties in armored ambulances but heavy exchanges of gunfire between Palestinians and Israel Defense Forces soldiers prevented further evacuations. The wounded were evacuated to Soroka Medical Center in Be'er Sheva.

The terminal, closed to Palestinian traffic at this hour, was relatively empty at the time of the attack. However, there is a permanent presence of Israeli civilian border authority personnel and a small IDF force permanently stationed at the crossing. The large bomb used to demolish the dividing wall between the Israeli and Palestinian sides of the crossing was apparently smuggled into Karni in a vehicle.