After attack from Gaza Strip
Israel attacks Hamas rocket factory
11/04/2022 12:02 p.m
The conflict between the Palestinians and Israel threatens to escalate again: Israel responds to an attack from the Gaza Strip with an attack on Hamas targets. The political upheaval in Israel offers further potential for conflict.
Israel’s military responded with air strikes after rocket fire from the Gaza Strip. The target was an underground facility used by the Islamist Hamas to manufacture rockets in the center of the Gaza Strip, the armed forces said. According to Palestinian security sources, two Hamas military wing facilities were hit and severely damaged. So nobody was injured.
Just a few hours earlier, several rockets had been fired towards Israel from the Mediterranean coast. According to the local military, one of them was intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system over Israeli territory. Three more ended up in the Palestinian enclave. Sirens could be heard in several cities in southern Israel.
The latest attack occurred shortly after the parliamentary elections in Israel, from which long-time right-wing conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emerged victorious after having been in the opposition for some time. The issue of security had played an important role in the election campaign. With Netanyahu, a right-wing extremist alliance could also make it into the government for the first time. It is feared that the conflict with the Palestinians could worsen.
Officially, no one initially claimed responsibility for the attack. Israel’s military held Hamas “responsible for all terrorist activities originating in the Gaza Strip.” According to reports from the Gaza Strip, the rockets were fired by the Palestinian organization Islamic Jihad.
On Thursday, a leading member of the Al-Quds Brigades – the military wing of the extremist Palestinian organization – was killed during an Israeli military operation in the occupied West Bank. He is said to have been involved in attacks against Israeli soldiers and to have planned further attacks. Islamic Jihad is particularly active in the Gaza Strip and repeatedly carries out rocket attacks from there.
Most recently, there was an exchange of blows with the Israeli military in early August. After three days, a ceasefire was agreed. More than 40 people died in the Gaza Strip. Hundreds were injured. Violent clashes, attacks by Palestinians and raids by the Israeli army occur almost daily in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.