Israeli airstrike kills seven in Gaza city

An Israeli airstrike against a car carrying militants along a main road in Gaza city killed seven Palestinians today, including a child, Palestinian hospital officials said.

The Israeli military said the militants were on a mission to launch rockets at southern Israel. Palestinian witnesses said two missiles were fired, but they missed the car.

The second missile came two minutes after the first, when a crowd had begun to gather around the scene of the attack.

Israel-Palestinian violence has escalated since an explosion on a Gaza beach killed eight civilians on Friday.