Jerusalem: At least 12 Palestinians were killed and about 50 others injured as Israeli troops raided two Gaza refugee camps early today (March 7, 2004) in what the Army said was an operation to apprehend perpetrators of terror attacks.

Among the 12 dead were a 15-year-old boy and four militants, including two members of the Hamas, which has carried out the most number of suicide attacks against Israel, an Israeli Defence spokesman said.

Dozens of armoured military vehicles rolled into the Bureij and Nusseirat camps in Central Gaza around 04:00 hours (IST) accompanied by helicopter gunships and were met with fierce resistance. No casualties have been reported on the Israeli side.

The spokesman said the Army had raided the camps in a "pinpointed operation against the terrorist infrastructure...focusing on terrorist cells who frequently fire mortar shells and activate explosive devices against Israeli civilian and military targets".

The operation was launched hours after leading Palestinian militant factions, the Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Fatah, launched a botched combined car bomb and shooting attack against IDF soldiers deployed at the Erez crossing and inside Israel yesterday. Altogether six Palestinians, including the attackers, were killed in the attempt with no casualties on the Israeli side.