Two Israeli civilians were killed yesterday as a result of a Palestinian attack on a fuel depot near Israel’s border with Gaza, Israeli officials said.

The daylight militant raid is expected to lead to many more altercations after a rather calm month in the area.

The terminal at Nahal Oz supplies Gaza with fuel and the cessation of labor due to the attack disrupted all activities. Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Arye Mekel stated that the attack would only inflict more damage to the already heavily shook-down Gazan civilians by menacing the current flow of fuel and other humanitarian supplies to Gaza.

"Israel sends food, gas, medical supplies and humanitarian assistance every day and the terrorists who attacked the crossing today are trying to harm this operation and are harming mostly the well-being of the people," Mekel said, as quoted by the Associated Press.

Even though Islamic Jihad, the Popular Resistance Committees and a group loosely affiliated with Fatah claimed joint responsibility for the attack, the Israeli government declared Gaza’s Hamas rulers responsible and rightful bearers of the consequences.

According to the AP, immediately after the border crossing attack, the Israeli government sent into the Palestinian territory a large number of military units including tanks, aircrafts and on-foot troops.

At least nine Palestinians were killed in the fire exchange, some caught in Israel and some after they had retreated back into Gaza.

Israeli officials stated that the Palestinian’s plan included the attack of a near-by village and also the taking of prisoners in order to have a negotiation advantage, saying that the crisis was properly taken care of and that it could have been much worse without the military’s prompt intervention.