Israeli airstrike kills two top Gaza militants

ISRAEL killed two top Palestinian fugitives yesterday, pulverising their car in a missile attack just after Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas travelled on the same road near a Gaza refugee camp.

The airstrike triggered threats of revenge by militants and made it harder for the beleaguered Mr Abbas to rescue a fragile truce.

In the past, armed groups have fired homemade rockets at Israeli border towns in response, drawing Israeli reprisals that have been particularly harsh since the Israeli pullout from Gaza in September.