Calm returns in Gaza strip
GAZA CITY — Calm returned to the Gaza Strip and nearby Israeli communities on Wednesday after the worst military flare-up since a 2014 war raised fears of yet another fullblown conflict in the beleaguered Palestinian enclave.
At the United Nations, envoy for the Middle East Nickolay Mladenov warned the Security Council that the escalation showed "how close to the brink of war we are every day."
The exchange of fire on Tuesday and into the early hours of Wednesday began with a barrage of rocket and mortars into Israel from Gaza.
Israel said it targeted some 65 militant sites in the Gaza Strip. It also said around 100 rockets and mortars fired from Gaza either exploded in Israel or were intercepted by air defences.
Three Israeli soldiers were wounded, one moderately and two lightly, the military said. There were no reports of casualties in Gaza.
Late Tuesday, an Islamic Jihad spokesman said a ceasefire had been reached, and on Wednesday senior Hamas official Khalil al-Hayya also spoke of an accord.
Though Israeli officials denied being part of a ceasefire, calm was maintained on Wednesday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's military had delivered the "harshest blow" in years to Gaza militants.
"Since yesterday, the army has responded forcefully to fire from the Gaza Strip with attacks against dozens of targets of terrorist organisations in the harshest blow that we have dealt them in years," Netanyahu said, according to his office.
Tuesday's violence followed weeks of deadly unrest along the border between Israel and the blockaded Palestinian enclave.
In a rare joint statement, Hamas and Islamic Jihad declared shared responsibility for the rocket and mortar fire, saying it was in retaliation for Israeli attacks targeting their positions.
Three Islamic Jihad members were killed in an Israeli strike Sunday, and the group vowed revenge. Islamic Jihad is the secondlargest armed group in Gaza after Hamas.
The United Nations Security Council convened on Wednesday to discuss the violence, following a US request for an urgent meeting.
"This latest round of attacks is a warning to all of how close to the brink of war we are every day," said UN envoy Mladenov, speaking via video link from Jerusalem.
But Kuwait, a nonpermanent council member, blocked a USdrafted statement that would have strongly condemned Palestinian rocket fire from Gaza.
The Gulf nation said it was blocking the statement to allow for consideration of a draft resolution it has put forward on the protection of Palestinian civilians.
The United States, which has veto power in the council, will oppose such measures, Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon told reporters.
US Ambassador Nikki Haley said "the people of Gaza do not need protection from an external source. The people of Gaza need protection from Hamas."