A Palestinian woman reacts as she and others gather around a vehicle after it was hit in an Israeli missile strike in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, 19 April 2008

Israel launched a series of air strikes on the Gaza Strip Sunday, killing seven Palestinian militants.

Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev says the strikes were in retaliation for a Hamas attack Saturday on an Israeli cargo crossing at the Gaza border.

Hamas militants in Gaza drove two cars packed with explosives into the border crossing, killing four of the militants and wounding 13 Israeli soldiers.

Israeli military officials say the attack may have been part of a larger plot to kidnap Israeli soldiers.

Hamas claimed responsibility for the bombing and promised to stage more attacks to break Israel's blockade on the Gaza Strip.

Hamas has controlled Gaza for nearly a year.  Israel says its blockade is pressuring militants in the Palestinian territory to end daily rocket fire on Israeli towns across the border.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.