IDF retaliates to three rockets fired at Israel by striking Hamas targets
Two rockets fell inside the Gaza Strip but set off sirens in Hof Ashkelon and Sha'ar HaNegev regional councils. A third fell in an open area in Israel but set off no alarms.
By AVRAHAM GOLDUpdated: DECEMBER 7, 2017 21:55Rocket fragment found by secuirty forces in an open field, December 19,2014(photo credit: Courtesy)
The IDF confirmed it struck two Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said. The strikes came in response to three missiles launched from the Gaza Strip toward Israel earlier in the evening.Two rockets fired from the Gaza Strip fell inside the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and did not reach Israeli territory, but set off rocket sirens in the Hof Ashkelon and Sha'ar HaNegev regional councils, as well as the city of Sdreot.A Jihadist Salafi group in Gaza called the Al-Tawheed Brigades - which does not heed the call from the enclave's dominant force, Hamas, to desist from firing rockets - claimed responsibility for the first two launches.Israel holds Hamas responsible for all activity happening in the Gaza Strip.A third rocket, of unconfirmed origins, was fired toward Israel and landed in Israeli territory in an open area, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit confirmed. Since the rocket did not approach an urban center it did not set off rocket sirens in the Negev communities near the Gaza Strip.The IDF confirmed the use of a tank and an IAF aircraft to strike Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip.Gaza residents said there were no casualties from the Israeli attack and that two unmanned lookout posts were hit.The day after US President Donald Trump's announcement that he was recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital was marked by Palestinian protests across the West Bank and Gaza Strip, resulting in the closure of the Gilboa Crossing in the West Bank.-Anna Ahronheim and Reuters contributed to this report.
