JERUSALEM, June 22: Israel has resumed an assassination policy against Islamic Jihad militants, a sign of how far a truce with the Palestinians has deteriorated. An Israeli aircraft fired missiles at four Islamic Jihad men in the Gaza village of Beit Lahiya on Wednesday as they launched rockets into Israel. No one was hurt but a rocket was destroyed.

The army said the strike targeted the launchers, not people.

A government official had earlier said Israel could stage air strikes in Gaza, even at the risk of Palestinian civilian casualties, to ensure its Gaza pullout did not come under fire.

Israel shelved ‘targeted killings’ of militants in February as part of a new truce deal.

But resurgent violence has raised the spectre of disruption to Israel’s planned August withdrawal from Gaza and dimmed hopes for ‘road map’ peace talks afterwards.

Word that the assassination policy had been dusted off came with Israeli confirmation of a failed missile strike on Tuesday while Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were holding tense talks in Jerusalem.

“An opportunity presented itself. Any means to neutralize the organization are relevant and possible,” Public Security Minister Gideon Ezra said.

Islamic Jihad has resumed mortar bomb and rocket salvoes against Jewish settlements in Gaza in what it calls retaliation for continued Israeli raids to capture wanted militants.

“The attempt yesterday to kill an Islamic Jihad leader in Gaza signalled the resumption of the targeted killing policy,” an Israeli security source told Reuters.

Khaled al-Batsh, a senior Islamic Jihad leader, warned of ‘terrible consequences’ if Israel carried out assassinations.

“The calm would thereby end. We will not be dictated to by Israel,” he told Reuters in Gaza.

Later, a senior adviser to Sharon said Israel could stage air strikes in Gaza if militants tried to attack departing settlers to try to show they were chasing them out of occupied territory.

Withdrawing from Gaza under fire would be political poison for Sharon, strengthening rightist foes who have said the pullout would be perceived by the Palestinians and Arab world as a sign of weakness after four years of bloodshed.

“Israel will act in a very resolute manner to prevent terror attacks ... while the disengagement is being implemented,” said Eival Giladi, head of the government team coordinating the plan.

“If pinpoint response proves insufficient, we may have to use weaponry that causes major collateral damage.”

Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said Israel could respond to any Palestinian attacks from Gaza even after the pullout.

“If needed, Israel will return to Gaza after the disengagement for a few days in order to stop the terrorism,” the Haaretz daily quoted Shalom as telling foreign diplomats.

At their summit, Sharon complained to Abbas that the moderate Palestinian leader was doing little to rein in gunmen from whom he wrung a pledge of ‘calm’ after his election in January on a platform of non-violence and peace negotiations.

Other militant groups including the most powerful, Hamas, have generally respected the truce.—Reuters