JERUSALEM - Israeli troops, accompanied by tanks and armored engineering vehicles, have carried out raids inside Gaza and clashed with Hamas militants, leaving one Israeli soldier dead and three wounded, military said Monday. Israel Defense Forces spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari told reporters that armored and infantry forces were fighting inside the Gaza perimeter with the mission 'to kill terrorist cells in preparation for the next phases of war.
Hagari, the IDF spokesman, said soldiers had been searching for missing Israelis and clearing an area when they were attacked. 'An antitank missile fired at a tank and an engineering vehicle during a local raid carried out earlier today in the Gaza Strip, in the vicinity of Kissufim,' he said. 'During the night there were raids by tank and infantry forces. These raids are raids that kill squads of terrorists who are preparing for the next stage in the war.