Israel Strikes Back at Gaza After Hamas Fires Rocket
Israel’s air force struck a Hamas forward lookout post in response to the firing of a rocket from Gaza.
The strike Friday morning on a post just south of the Erez Crossing in the northern tip of the Gaza Strip resulted in no casualties, Army Radio reported, citing Palestinian media. The rocket that exploded inside Israel on Thursday also resulted in neither injuries nor damage to property.
Israel and Hamas have refrained from such skirmishes for months, adhering to understandings reached after Protective Edge, Israel’s offensive on Hamas last summer in response to its firing of rockets at Israeli towns and cities. Since December, Palestinians have fired four missiles into Israel, resulting in no injuries or damage.
Uri Ariel, Israel’s minister of construction, was among the politicians who on Thursday, Israel’s Independence Day, called for a forceful retaliation to the latest rocket fire.
“This is a serious occurrence and Israel must retaliate with full force,” he told Army Radio. “Hamas must understand that every rocket fired from the Strip will bring a response many times more painful than the original injury.”
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