ROME. The Israeli Air Force struck several targets in the Gaza Strip in the early hours of today, after a rocket had been fired a few hours earlier in the Israeli border area. A “major rocket production site” operated by the Palestinian organization Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, and a Hamas tunnel in the southern part of the Gaza Strip were hit, according to Israeli military reports.
The Israeli military said the missile defenses were not activated and there were no reports of casualties or property damage. It was initially unclear who was responsible for the attack. Several rockets were last fired at Israel from the Gaza Strip in early November. On Thursday night, two members of the militant Palestinian Islamic Jihad organization were killed in an Israeli military operation in the West Bank. Islamic Jihad is particularly active in the Gaza Strip and often carries out rocket attacks from there.
The situation in the occupied West Bank has been tense for months. Following a series of attacks on Israelis that began in March, the army has carried out further raids there. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health, 159 Palestinians have been killed this year in connection with military operations, clashes or own attacks. In Israel and the West Bank, 31 civilians and security forces have been killed in attacks this year.