[Ynet] Islamic Jihad...created after many members of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood decided the organization was becoming too moderate. Operations were conducted out of Egypt until 1981 when the group was exiled after the assassination of President Anwar Sadat. They worked out of Gaza until they were exiled to Lebanon in 1987, where they clove tightly to Hezbollah. In 1989 they moved to Damascus, where they remain a subsidiary of Hezbollah...
fires dozens of rockets at cities and towns in southern Israel in response to death of 3 of their men in IAF strike. Residents were asked to stay in their shelters.
IDF tanks fired at terror infrastructure in the Gazoo Strip Wednesday evening, on in its north and another in its south, in responds to the barrage of at least 60 rockets fired at the Israeli south earlier.
Residents in the Beit Hanoun area of Gazoo said they saw an Israeli strike hit a rocket launcher squad.
There were no immediate reports of casualties from the rocket fire, but a 57-year-old woman from Sderot was lightly injured while running to take cover. The Iron Dome missile-defense system intercepted at least three rockets over Sderot.
This was the heaviest barrage of rockets fired from the Strip since the 2012 Operation Pillar of Defense.
The rockets were fired from both the north of the Strip and its south. Most of the rockets fell in open fields, at least eight fell inside southern communities. The Eshkol Regional Council reported on at least 15 rockets that fell in its area, including one that fell inside one of the towns but did not explode.
Israeli police front man Micky Rosenfeld said one rocket went
kaboom!near a gas station and another near a public library.
| The Islamic Jihad, that said it fired 70 rockets, took advantage of the stormy weather when the IDF's ability to identify and intercept rocket fire is lower. |
"The Al-Quds Brigades responded to aggression by a salvo of rockets," a statement from the Islamic Jihad said.
"The Al-Quds Brigades will not break the truce (with Israel), but will retain the right to respond to the Zionist aggression at the right time and the right place," front man Abu Ahmad said.
The Islamic Jihad, that said it fired 70 rockets, took advantage of the stormy weather when the IDF's ability to identify and intercept rocket fire is lower.
Chief of Staff Benny Gantz, who is currently in the United States, was receiving constant updates from Deputy Chief of Staff Gadi Eizenkot.
'Code Red' sirens were heard in throughout the western Negev communities, including Sderot, Netivot and in the Shaar HaNegev and Sdot Negev Regional Councils.
Security forces were scanning the area for rockets, and the level of alert has been raised. Residents in the area were instructed to stay in their shelters and secure rooms.
"It appears that a rocket salvo came in response to the preventative IAF strike yesterday. we will continue stopping attacks and hitting those who wish to harm us, and will act against them with full force," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wrote on Facebook shortly after the rockets barrage."The number of rockets fired from the Gazoo Strip in the last year has been the lowest in a decade, but this is not enough for us. We will continue acting to ensure the security of the people of Israel both in the south and across the country," he added.
Speaking to Sderot Mayor Alon Davidi, Netanyahu promised to "strike terror as hard as demanded in order to restore calm to the south."
"I was helping deliver Purim treat baskets to IDF soldiers serving on the Gazoo border when I heard about the rocket attack," Davidi told Ynet, standing where one of the rockets hit his city.