Israel, Hamas trade heavy fire triggered by botched Gaza raid
GAZA, Palestinian Territory — Palestinian militants bombarded Israel with dozens of rockets and mortar shells Monday, while Israeli warplanes struck targets throughout the Gaza Strip in what appeared to be the most intense exchange of fire since a 2014 war.
Palestinian officials said at least three people, including two militants, were killed by Israeli fire and nine were wounded, and an Israeli air strike destroyed the ruling Hamas group’s TV station. In Israel, the national rescue service said at least 20 people were wounded, including a 19-year-old soldier and a 60-yearold woman who were in critical condition.
The fighting cast doubt over recent understandings brokered by Egypt and United Nations officials to reduce tensions. Just a day earlier, Israel’s prime minister had defended those understandings, saying he was doing everything possible to avoid another war.
The United Nations said it was working with Egypt to broker a halt in the violence. “Rockets must STOP, restraint must be shown by all!” the UN Mideast envoy’s office tweeted.
The rocket fire was triggered by a botched Israeli military raid in Gaza on Sunday. Undercover troops, apparently on a reconnaissance mission, were discovered inside Gaza on Sunday, setting off a battle that left seven militants, including a Hamas commander, and an Israeli military officer dead.
At sundown on Monday, militants launched about 100 rockets in less than an hour, the most intense barrage since the 50-day war four years ago. The outgoing rockets, which continued into the evening, lit up the skies of Gaza and set off air raid sirens throughout southern Israel.
The military said warplanes, helicopters and tanks had struck more than 70 militant targets, including military compounds, observation posts and weapons facilities. It also said it targeted a squad that was launching rockets.
Lt. Col. Jonathan Conricus, a military spokesman, said the army had sent additional infantry troops, rocket defence systems and intelligence units to the Gaza frontier.
“We continue to strike and retaliate against the military targets belonging to terrorist organizations in Gaza, and as for our intentions we will enhance these efforts as needed,” he told reporters.
Late Monday, an air strike destroyed the Gaza City headquarters of Hamas’ Al Aqsa TV station. Israel had fired warning shots ahead of the air strike, prompting the station to halt programming and replace it with a logo. Minutes later, the air strike flattened the three-storey building and the station went black.
Workers had evacuated the building after the warning shots, and there were no immediate reports of casualties.
Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum condemned the bombing as “a barbaric, brazen aggression.” Ten minutes later, the station resumed broadcasts, airing pre-recorded national songs.
Israel said the station “broadcasts violent propaganda” and provides “operational messaging” to militants. A five-storey office building that housed Hamas media offices and another building used by Hamas’s internal security service were also destroyed. No casualties were reported.
Hamas and the smaller militant group Islamic Jihad said the rocket fire was revenge for Sunday night’s Israeli incursion. Islamic Jihad spokesman Daoud Shehab said the groups wanted “the occupation and its supporters know that the lives of our sons come with a price.”
In all, more than 300 rockets had been fired into Israel by midnight, the army said. The Israeli military said it intercepted 70 rockets, and most of the others fell in open spaces. But rockets landed in the southern Israeli town of Sderot, setting off a large fire near a shopping centre. Several homes were hit in southern towns, including one that was destroyed in Ashkelon. About midnight, a rocket struck another building in Ashkelon, wounding at least 10 people, including one woman in critical condition, according to police.
Earlier, a bus was struck by an anti-tank missile, critically wounding a 19-year-old soldier. The strike set the bus on fire, sending a large plume of black smoke over the area.