In total, there were around 270 deaths, 205 of whom crossed the border into Israel. According to the army, the Israeli air force had already attacked more than 100 targets in the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired more than 200 rockets into Israeli territory on Wednesday, the military said. In total, there were about 270 deaths, 205 of whom crossed the border into Israel, the military said earlier in the evening. According to the army, the Israeli air force had already attacked more than 100 targets in the Gaza Strip. According to hospital reports, at least five Palestinians were killed.
The Israeli military reported that a total of 63 missiles were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. The rest fell in open areas, and there were also three impacts in urban areas. Sirens also sounded in central Israel in the afternoon.
Palestinian security sources said several military installations and facilities belonging to the Palestinian militant organization Islamic Jihad were hit.
According to Israeli paramedics, two women in Israel were slightly injured on their way to shelters. An unoccupied house in the town of Sderot was also hit by a rocket. Explosions were heard in several Israeli cities.
According to media reports, traffic at Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv was briefly disrupted. Planes trying to land were instructed to circle out of missile range for a few minutes, the ynet news website reported.
13 people killed in Israeli airstrikes
The escalation was preceded by the targeted assassination of three high-ranking members of the Palestinian militant organization Islamic Jihad. A total of 13 people were killed in Israeli air strikes on Tuesday night, including several women and children. In addition, two members of a Palestinian militant group were killed in an Israeli attack on a car in the southern Gaza Strip. According to the army, they would have carried anti-tank guided missiles.
A coalition of Palestinian militant organizations in the Gaza Strip said in a joint statement that the rocket launches were a response to recent Israeli attacks. The country was threatened with “dark days” if the “aggression” continued, he said. The Israeli army has justified military rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip in recent weeks and has planned attacks in the near future. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he was prepared for “more heavy blows against Gaza”.
According to experts, the involvement of the Palestinian organization Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip, in launching the rockets plays a decisive role in the course of the conflict. This was initially unclear.
Israel has repeatedly targeted jihad leaders in the Gaza Strip in the past. In August last year, for example, military chief Khalid Mansour and two other members were killed in an Israeli airstrike. At that time, there were massive rocket attacks from Palestinian territory and other Israeli air strikes. After three days, an Egyptian-brokered ceasefire came into effect.
More than two million people live in the Gaza Strip in very precarious conditions. Hamas violently seized power in the Palestinian Territory in 2007. Israel then tightened its blockade of the coastal area, which is supported by Egypt.
Hamas and Islamic Jihad are classified as terrorist organizations by the US, EU and Israel. Both groups took up the cause of Israel’s destruction. However, Islamic Jihad is considered even more radical than Hamas. According to the CIA World Factbook, the number of jihadist fighters is estimated at between 1,000 and several thousand. Hamas is considered much stronger militarily, with the number of fighters estimated at 25,000. Unlike Hamas, Islamic Jihad has no interest in participating in government, instead focusing on armed resistance to Israel.
(APA)