A Palestinian boy cleans up debris following an Israeli airstrike hitting
Gaza City: Israeli warplanes struck Gaza early yesterday for the second time in three days after cross-border rocket fire by an Islamist extremist group which is locked in a power struggle with Hamas.
It was the third time Israel had staged retaliatory air strikes on Gaza Strip in the past fortnight after three instances of rocket fire, all of which were claimed by Salafist extremists loosely allied with the Islamic State group.
Palestinian security sources and witnesses said the raids targeted a training site belonging to Hamas’ armed wing, the Ezzedine Al Qassam Brigades, in the northern Beit Lahiya area. The rocket fire on Saturday evening struck open ground near the southern port of Ashkelon, causing no casualties. The same area was targeted by three rockets on Wednesday. The Israeli government ordered the closure until further notice of the Erez crossing for people and the Kerem Shalom crossing for goods.
Israel said it held Hamas responsible for all attacks emanating from the Palestinian enclave, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warning that nobody would prevent Israel from defending itself. “I have not heard anyone in the international community condemn this firing; neither has UN said a word,” he told ministers at the start of the weekly cabinet meeting. AFP
