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Calling for international intervention to stop the rocket launches at once, he threatened there would be consequences in the coming days without specifying what they would be.

Islamic Jihad said that air strike on its Rafah training camp killed commander Ahmed al-Sheikh Khalil and four comrades who oversaw manufacture of bombs and rockets for the faction.

Doctors said two other militants were hurt in the incident, during which witnesses reported Israeli helicopters overhead.

In Jerusalem, the Israeli military said in a statement that its aircraft had “targeted a terrorist squad … that was preparing to launch long-range rockets”.

It said those struck were responsible for the rocket launch late on Wednesday, though no Palestinian faction had claimed responsibility.

NO TRUCE NOW

Islamic Jihad, a sometime Hamas ally, has chafed at its recent efforts to impose de facto ceasefires with Israel.

Hamas last week repatriated an Israeli soldier it captured in 2006 in exchange for the staggered release of more than 1,000 jailed Palestinians. That deal, mediated by Egypt, stirred speculation a more enduring detente could be in the works.

“There is no chance of speaking about a truce now, following such a big crime against leaders of the group,” said Islamic Jihad spokesman Abu Ahmed.

“Now we are talking about the suitable response to this crime,” he said, a threat of retribution echoed by other militant groups.

Within hours, at least 20 Palestinian rockets and mortar bombs hit different sites in southern Israel, wounding three civilians, police said. Islamic Jihad and the more secular factions Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) and al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades separately took credit.