TERROR AT GAZA BORDER

6 Israelis killed in attack at Karni crossing
Six Israeli security guards were killed and five others were wounded late Thursday night in a combined bombing and shooting attack at the Karni crossing in north Gaza Strip.

Three Palestinian terrorists were reported killed in the attack, which occurred shortly before the terminal was to close.

According to initial reports, shortly before 11 p.m terrorists placed a powerful bomb next to a metal door between the Israeli and Palestinian side of the crossing, causing a hole in the wall through which the three terrorists entered and engaged in gun battles with the security guards.

As the wounded were being evacuated from the area, a mortar shell was fired at the crossing.

Magen David Adom officials said they evacuated five wounded civilian guards to the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba, three of them in critical condition. Owing to the fierce gun battles at the site of the explosion, paramedics reported they had extreme difficulty in reaching the wounded in order to treat them.

The Aksa Martyrs Brigades claimed responsibility for the attack, as did Hamas and the umbrella Popular Resistance Committee. Fatah hailed "a martyrdom operation" at Karni, which is the main crossing point for goods transported to and from Gaza.