Gaza City: Eight people, including four schoolboys, were injured on October 9 when Israeli gunfire ripped through a school and nearby buildings in the Southern Gaza town of Khan Yunis, Palestinian security officials said.

Bullets smacked into the Abdel Khadr elementary school in Khan Yunis, injuring four schoolboys and a member of the school's kitchen staff, the officials said.

Two more people were hit in their homes, while the eighth injury was to a market vendor.

The Palestinians said there was no previous firing when the shooting broke out from Army positions on the Gush Katif Jewish settlement bloc, just a few hundred metres from the edge of the Palestinian town and refugee camp.

The Army said it was looking into the incident.

Khan Yunis was the scene of a major Israeli raid on October 7, which left 16 Palestinians dead and brought sharp criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, who nevertheless said his raids would continue.

The Army said the raid was aimed at rooting out militant groups firing mortars at scarred Palestinian buildings in the streets facing the settlements.

Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory, strongly supported by Sharon, are considered illegal by the international community and are one of the biggest obstacles to a resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.