An Israeli air strike on a Hamas position in the Gaza Strip has killed three Palestinian militants.
Hamas says Israeli aircraft attacked one of its positions in southern Gaza before dawn Tuesday. Israel's military confirmed the air strike.
Israeli forces frequently launch operations in Gaza against militants who fire rockets into southern Israel and attack Israeli troops guarding the Israel-Gaza border.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said this week he has authorized the military to hit manned militant positions across Gaza, instead of focussing only on rocket-launching squads and infrastructure as previously.
In another development, Jordan's King Abdullah is urging full international support for upcoming Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, due to begin December 12th.
The Jordanian king met visiting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Amman Monday. A palace statement quotes the king as saying Palestinians and Israelis must seize the opportunity provided by last month's U.S.-hosted Mideast peace conference.
At the Annapolis conference, Mr. Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert agreed to restart negotiations aimed at reaching a peace deal by the end of 2008.
Earlier Monday, Israel released 429 Palestinian prisoners in a gesture toward President Abbas. Most of those freed are members of Mr. Abbas's Fatah faction.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
