The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Gaza City

Israeli troops on a night mission in the Gaza Strip killed two Hamas gunmen early Friday as Israel responded to Palestinian rocket fire with strikes against militants that left 11 dead in 24 hours.

The simmering conflict between Israel and Gaza's armed groups has escalated less than a week before President Bush's visit to the region, overshadowing peace efforts and increasing the chances of a full-scale armed conflict in Gaza.

On Thursday, Palestinian militants hit Israel with a Katyusha rocket, a weapon with a deadlier warhead and longer range than the smaller rockets militants regularly launch. It hit in the northern part of the town of Ashkelon, the longest reach yet for a Palestinian rocket.

The Israelis hit back Thursday with airstrikes and ground operations that killed nine people, including three civilians. On Friday infantrymen inside Gaza, near the Israeli border, clashed with Hamas gunmen and killed two of them, according to Hamas and Palestinian medical officials.

Troops saw armed men approaching them and opened fire, the military said.

Thursday's rocket strike caused no casualties, but Israel considers it an escalation, government spokesman David Baker said.