Gaza strike wounds 5 militants

An Israeli air strike in northern Gaza has wounded five Palestinian militants, Palestinian medics and witnesses say.

An Israeli Army spokesman says the military has targeted a car carrying Islamic Jihad militants, who were involved in recent rocket attacks against the Jewish state.

Israel has often targeted Palestinian militants in Gaza and has stepped up an offensive in the territory in recent days in a bid to stop rocket attacks against the Jewish state and to pressure armed groups to free a soldier they abducted in June.

Palestinian witnesses say an Israeli missile has wounded two members of Islamic Jihad inside their vehicle near the town of Beit Hanoun and that another missile struck another car carrying members of Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, injuring three of them.

The Army spokesman says the military has targeted one vehicle and the second explosion may have been caused by munitions.

It is unclear if the militants had carried any in the vehicles.

Both Islamic Jihad and Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, which is part of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah group, have in the past carried out rocket attacks against Israel from Gaza.

At least 220 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's offensive, around half of them civilians, according to Palestinian medical workers and research groups.

- Reuters