Israel attacks Gaza Strip security buildings

Israeli helicopters have fired missiles at Palestinian security buildings inside a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, the latest in a series of attacks on the infrastructure of the Palestinian Authority.

The Israeli army said the attack in the Rafah camp in southern Gaza was in retaliation for the firing of mortar shells at nearby Jewish settlements.

Nobody was injured in the bombing, which targeted three buildings owned by Palestinian military intelligence and Yasser Arafat’s personal guard, Force 17.

Witnesses said the missiles blew large holes in the roofs of the buildings and toppled some walls.

The area had been evacuated in recent days in anticipation of an Israeli attack, but Palestinian security officials who worked in the buildings could be seen sifting through the rubble for personal belongings.

Israel said it bombed the Palestinian Authority buildings because the people who worked there had not prevented mortars being fired at Jewish settlements in the surrounding area.

Five mortars were fired at Jewish settlements yesterday, but nobody was injured.