Hamas militant killed in Gaza car blast

GAZA, June 27 (Reuters) A car exploded in Gaza City today, killing a militant from the ruling Palestinian faction Hamas, witnesses and Hamas said.

Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri identified the dead man as Hamza Muhareb, a member of the group's armed wing, and said reports indicated he was killed by an Israeli air strike.

But the Israeli military denied involvement in the incident, which follows heightened Israeli-Palestinian tensions over the abduction of an Israeli soldier by militants from Gaza.

Israel has been massing tanks and troops near Gaza for a threatened offensive against militants while the government has also said it would target leaders of the governing Hamas movement if the kidnapped soldier was not freed.

Today's explosion took place within a few hundred metres (yards) of the the office of Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh of Hamas, and of the Gazan residence of President Mahmoud Abbas.

REUTERS HS KN2130