Israel, Hamas trade fire amid flare-up in Gaza tensions
The Israeli regime military has carried out airstrikes and artillery attacks on various sites across the besieged Gaza Strip over what it claimed as a volley of rockets launched from the Palestinian enclave into occupied territories.
The military said in a statement that underground infrastructure and military positions belonging to Hamas resistance movement were targeted in strikes by Israeli tanks and military aircraft on Friday morning, after resistance fighters in the besieged enclave fired six rockets at southern Israel overnight.
The statement added that the projectiles triggered sirens in the Nahal Oz and Alumim settlements, east of the northern Gaza Strip, sending hundreds of residents settlers to bomb shelters.
An unnamed Israeli military spokesman said he did not have any information on where the Gaza rockets landed, but that none of them were intercepted by Iron Dome missile system.
The rockets came shortly after the Israeli military initially bombed Hamas facilities in Gaza over alleged launch of incendiary and explosive balloons into occupied lands throughout Thursday.
There have been no immediate reports on possible damage or casualties in the attacks.
Israel has been pounding the Gaza Strip almost nightly for the past two weeks, saying it would not tolerate the balloons coming from the enclave.
Mediators from the United Nations, Egypt and Qatar have been working to restore calm. Qatari envoy Mohammad al-Emadi has been in Gaza since Tuesday, holding talks with Hamas leaders.
Israeli regime on August 11 closed Kerem Shalom crossing – the main crossing into the Gaza Strip, citing the launch of incendiary balloons from the besieged enclave as the cause.
Israeli authorities slashed Gaza’s permitted fishing zone the next day, halving the area from 15 nautical miles to eight.
Palestinian health officials have voiced serious concern that the power plant shutdown could aggravate a novel coronavirus outbreak in Gaza Strip, which is home to two million Palestinians.
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