5 Gazans injured by Israeli artillery fire

Five Palestinians, including two children, were injured by Israeli artillery fire south of the Gaza Strip early Friday.

They sustained shrapnel wounds after an artillery shell hit near their home in Khuza'a village in the southern city of Khan Younis, Health Ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qodrah told Anadolu Agency.

A mosque was also hit by Israeli artillery fire in the area.

Israel has mounted attacks in the Gaza Strip and a massive detention campaign in the West Bank since three Jewish settlers went missing in the occupied territory two weeks ago.

Israel accuses the Gaza-based Hamas movement of kidnapping the three settlers, a claim the Palestinian group denies. 

Since the trio was first reported missing in mid-June, at least eight Palestinians have been killed and hundreds arrested including several Hamas-affiliated lawmakers.

No group has thus far claimed responsibility for the settlers' disappearance, but Israel’s Intelligence agency, the Shin Bet, has named two Hamas members that are suspected of allegedly kidnapping the three settlers who are missing. 

Also on Friday, an explosive device exploded near a security fence between Israel and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army said Friday.

No casualties were reported. An Israeli military vehicle was slightly damaged in the explosion, according to Israeli Yediot Aharonot newspaper.

Israeli army spokesman Peter Lerner wrote on Twitter that army tanks returned fire on suspected positions across the fence.