Hamas seized power in the coastal strip from rival Palestinian forces in 2007.

A teenage member of the group was killed in a gunbattle between the Israeli troops and Palestinian militants. Israel closed roads around Gaza earlier this week and sent reinforcements to the border as it braced for a revenge attack after Monday’s arrest of Bassam Al-Saadi, an Islamic Jihad leader, in a military raid in the occupied West Bank. “May God take revenge against spies,” shouted one, referring to Palestinian informants who cooperate with Israel.ĭefense Minister Benny Gantz approved an order to call up 25,000 reserve soldiers if needed while the military announced a “special situation” on the home front, with schools closed and limits placed on activities in communities within 80 kilometers (50 miles) of the border. Some went in to identify loved ones and emerged later in tears. “The launching of rockets must cease immediately, and I call on all sides to avoid further escalation,” he said.įollowing the initial Israeli strikes, a few hundred people gathered outside the morgue at Gaza City’s main Shifa hospital. The UN special envoy to the region, Tor Wennesland, said he was “deeply concerned.” Image grabs obtained from a video reportedly shows an Islamic Jihad observation post being targeted by the Israeli army in the Gaza strip on August 5, 2022. Israel continued to strike other targets Friday, including weapon-production facilities and Islamic Jihad positions. It wasn’t immediately clear how many rockets were launched, and there was no immediate word on any casualties on the Israeli side. Israeli media showed the skies above southern and central Israel lighting up with rockets and interceptors from Israel’s Iron Dome missile-defense system. Hundreds marched in a funeral procession for him and others who were killed, with many mourners waving Palestinian and Islamic Jihad flags and calling for revenge. The spokesman, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, said Al-Jabari was deliberately targeted and had been responsible for “multiple attacks” on Israel.

He had succeeded another militant killed in an airstrike in 2019.Īn Israeli military spokesman said the strikes were in response to an “imminent threat” from two militant squads armed with anti-tank missiles. Islamic Jihad said Taiseer Al-Jabari, its commander for northern Gaza, was among the dead. Palestinian mourners carry the body of Islamic Jihad commander Tayseer al-Jabari, killed in an Israeli air strike, during his funeral in Gaza City on Aug. The Israeli military said early estimates were that around 15 fighters were killed. The Palestinian Health Ministry said a 5-year-old girl and a 23-year-old woman were among those killed in Gaza, without differentiating between civilian and militant casualties. There has been almost no reconstruction since then, and the isolated coastal territory is mired in poverty, with unemployment hovering around 50 percent. Hamas also faces a dilemma in deciding whether to join a new battle barely a year after the last war caused widespread devastation. He has experience in diplomacy, having served as foreign minister in the outgoing government, but his security credentials are thin. The violence poses an early test for Lapid, who assumed the role of caretaker prime minister ahead of elections in November, when he hopes to keep the position. He added that “Israel isn’t interested in a broader conflict in Gaza but will not shy away from one either.” “Israel will not sit idly by when there are those who are trying to harm its civilians.” “This government has a zero-tolerance policy for any attempted attacks - of any kind - from Gaza toward Israeli territory,” Lapid said. In a nationally televised speech, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said his country launched the attacks based on “concrete threats.” Video released by Israel’s military showed the strikes blowing up three guard towers with suspected militants in them. Israel and Gaza’s militant Hamas rulers have fought four wars and several smaller battles over the last 15 years at a staggering cost to the territory’s 2 million Palestinian residents.Ī blast was heard in Gaza City, where smoke poured out of the seventh floor of a tall building. Islamic Jihad claimed to have fired 100 rockets. Hours later, Palestinian militants launched a barrage of rockets as air-raid sirens wailed in Israel and the two sides drew closer to another all-out war.

Israel said it targeted the Islamic Jihad militant group in response to an “imminent threat” following the recent arrest of another senior militant. GAZA CITY: Israel unleashed a wave of airstrikes Friday on Gaza, killing at least 10 people, including a senior militant, according to Palestinian officials.

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