People in the south of Israel woke up on Saturday to a very tense morning after the Israeli Air Force attacked Hamas targets the previous night in retaliation for the rocket that hit a house in Sderot, as well as several more rockets that were launched into the area surrounding Gaza but were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system.No further attacks have taken place since Friday night, despite Hamas threats.
As a result of the IAF operations, 27-year-old Palestinian Ahmad Mohamad a-Shakhri was killed and two other Palestinians were injured. A-Shakhri's funeral was attended by masses of Palestinians, calling for revenge against the State of Israel.
Following the air strikes, the IDF tweeted its list of targets, saying: “In response to rockets fired at Israel, we struck Hamas terror targets in Gaza including: naval force training compounds, a compound with an anti-missile simulator, weapon manufacturing & storage sites [and] underground infrastructures.”
The IDF response followed the two rounds of rocket strikes that were launched toward Sderot and the area surrounding Gaza. During the first round, the Israeli Iron Dome system located and destroyed all seven missiles. But during the second round however, one hit a house in Sderot, causing property damage and light wounds for a 65-year-old Israeli woman who was injured when she fell while running to the bomb shelter.
Hamas responded to the air strikes by saying that “Israel will bear the consequences.”
“The Israeli attacks against demonstrators and our people in Gaza are a continuation of crime and Israeli aggression against our people and against its courageous resistance,” Hamas wrote in a statement.Translated by Idan Zonshine.