Israel Strikes Gaza Targets After Rocket Fire, in Third Incident in a Month

Israel struck on Sunday targets in the Gaza Strip, hours after three rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip at southern Israel.

Palestinian media reported strikes east of the city of Gaza, while an official statement by the Israeli army said "underground facilities" used by Hamas in the northern Strip were targeted. No casualties were reported.

Two of the rockets hit open terrain in southern Israel, and no casualties or damage were reported. A third launch was intercepted by Israeli air defense, the army said, after an alarm sounded in Israeli border communities.

On June 27, Israeli fighter jets struck Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, after two rockets were launched from the coastal enclave at southern Israel.

• Hamas Tests Long-range Rockets in Gaza Night Before Annexation Target Date
• Israel Strikes Gaza Targets After First Rocket Launch in More Than a Month
• Israeli Army Strikes Hamas Targets After Two Rockets Launched From Gaza

The statement added that Israel held Hamas responsible for "everything that happens within the Strip" and that among the targets hit were “a workshop to produce rockets as well as infrastructure used to manufacture weapons for Hamas." The rockets launched into Israel both fell in open terrain. No casualties were reported on either side.

Two weeks before that, Israel struck targets in the Strip after a rocket was launched from it at southern communities, in a first since early May.

Increasingly confrontational rhethoric has recently replaced a deep coronavirus lull, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu unsuccessfully pushed towards a controversial decision to annex parts of the West Bank as early as July 1.

This has allowed the Palestinian leadership to temporarily bridge over long-standing differences and present a united front, while respected voices in Israel and worldwide warned about the potential violent consequences of Israeli annexation.