IDF strikes Gaza outposts in response to incendiary balloon attacks
IDF soldiers also thwarted an attempt to throw a Molotov cocktail toward worshipers near Rachel's Tomb.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFIDF Artillery Corps fires 155 mm M-109 howitzer gun during Operation Protective Edge, Gaza, 2014(photo credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT)
IDF tanks attacked Hamas observation outposts on Sunday overnight in response to earlier launches of incendiary balloons toward Israeli territory that ignited several harsh fires and to riots near the Gaza border fence, according to an official statement by the IDF Spokesperson's Unit.Shortly prior, IDF soldiers thwarted an attempt to throw Molotov cocktail toward worshipers near Rachel's Tomb in the West Bank. Since Sunday morning, 28 fires broke near the area surrounding the Gaza Strip as a result of the balloons, the National Fire and Rescue Authority reported. In the last few weeks, nearly 150 fires have been ignited, mostly in the Eshkol region.On Sunday night, it was announced by the police that an incendiary balloon was found in Beersheba. It did not explode on its own.Additional balloons were also found in Netivot and and the Sdot Negev Regional Council.Over the last weekend, nightly riots near the Gaza border fence broke out. According to the IDF, Hamas employs special units to terrorize the lives of Israeli citizens living near the border fence. These nightly riots ceased during much of the last year due to coronavirus, but have started to return.
