STATUE -4,500 YEAR OLD- STARES : GAZA CITY

A stone statuette over 4,500 years old depicting the face of an ancient goddess was discovered in the southern Gaza Strip, archaeological authorities in the Palestinian enclave announced Monday.

Carved out of limestone and 22 centimeters long, the 2500 BC statuette was found by a farmer working his land in Khan Younis, according to the ministry of tourism and antiquities for Hamas, the Islamist movement that rules Gaza.

''The statue represents the Canaanite goddess Anat,'' Jamal Abu Reda, in charge of antiquities at the ministry, said in a statement.

Anat, one of the best-known Canaanite deities, was the goddess of love and war.

It was uncovered on what was an important ''overland trade route for several civilisations'' that lived in what is now Gaza Strip, according to Abu Reda. [AFP]