Jerusalem: At least 13 Palestinians were killed and over 50 injured today (Feb 11, 2004) in separate gun-battles with Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip, in what the Army described as operations to check Kassam rocket attacks on Jewish settlements and unearth tunnels used for smuggling weapons.

Twelve Palestinians were killed and more than 40 wounded in Shajaiyeh neighbourhood of Gaza City in a fierce gunfight that started before dawn and continued throughout the day.

Among the dead was 18-year-old Mohammed Hilles, the son of Ahmed Hilles, the top leader of Yasser Arafat's Fatah faction in Gaza, media reports said.

The firefight ensued following the massive parallel pre-dawn incursions near Natzarim and Kibbutz Nahal Oz in the Gaza strip, and further South near Rafah.

An Israeli military spokesman said the Army had identified "at least 17 hits", adding all those targetted were armed with explosive devices or anti-tank missiles.

In a separate incident in the Rafah area along the Gaza-Egypt border, Israeli troops killed a Palestinian and injured nine others as they continued their operation to find tunnels booby-trapped with explosives.

The Army said the tunnels in the area have been used for smuggling weapons.

Meanwhile in the West Bank, security forces have reportedly apprehended 19 Palestinian terror suspects and fugitives in raids in various towns.