“Earlier today. a rocket was sacked from the Gaza Strip at southern Israel”, a military statement read.
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The sources said that the Israeli war jets fired one rocket at farm land, followed by tank shelling, without reporting any injuries.
The flare-up has raised concerns over the fate of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which controls Gaza, that has held since the 50-day military campaign by Israel.
The tunnels are among the most feared weapons of Hamas fighters during the 2014 summer war, and one was uncovered by the army stretching into Israeli territory on Thursday.
That truce agreement ended a 51-day Israeli military onslaught on the Gaza Strip in which at least 2,320 Palestinians were killed, thousands of others injured, and vast swathes of civilian infrastructure destroyed. Medical patients die waiting for an Israeli permit, Rafah border crossing rarely opens, and the Gaza rebuilding process is proceeding at a snail’s pace.
The border region has remained relatively quiet since 2014, despite allegations by the army that Hamas is building new tunnels from the enclave that could reach into Israel.
Over the weekend, Hamas halted its cross-border mortar attacks on IDF units that are searching for attack tunnels. It says this prompted return fire from Israeli tanks. The Israeli government has repeatedly talked about the “next” Gaza War being much bloodier, with far more casualties, and officials always insist that the “next” war is only a matter of time.
Hanane Akkaoui, a 53-year-old mother said she was scared for her children.
Friday’s fire comes after three days of violence in which Gaza militants fired mortars, prompting Israeli retaliatory fire.
The security cabinet is set to meet Friday to discuss the situation in the south.
In response, Israel launched several artillery attacks and airstrikes.
The Israeli response was the fifth IAF airstrike since Wednesday when IDF troops began operating along the border in an effort to uncover tunnels.
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Speaking at a Gaza mosque during Friday prayer, the deputy-head of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, told worshippers that the Islamists group was “not calling for war” with Israel, and that Egypt and other parties were working behind the scenes to defuse tensions. But a spokeswoman said no Palestinian mortars had been fired since this morning, after two days of more frequent barrages.
