Israeli regime pounds Gaza with bombs
OCCUPATION REGIME CLOSES BOTH BORDER POSTS WITH GAZA, RESTRICTS FISHING ZONE
Israeli regime warplanes pounded the Gaza Strip yesterday after the first rocket fire from the Palestinian territory in weeks hit an Israeli city, in a blow to efforts to avert a new war.
Gaza’s Islamist rulers Hamas disavowed the rocket fire, saying they rejected “all irresponsible attempts” to undermine Egyptian efforts to broker a new long-term truce.
But the Israeli occupation, which holds Hamas responsible for all rocket fire from the territory regardless of who launches it, struck 20 targets in Gaza, killing one Palestinian, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said.
Israeli regime also closed both its border posts with Gaza in reprisal, further isolating the blockaded enclave where deteriorating living conditions have stoked violent protests along the border.
Gaza fighters fired two rockets before dawn, one of which caused damage to the garden of a family home in the southern city of Beersheba, 40 kilometres away, the Israeli regime’s military said. The other rocket came down in the sea off Tel Aviv, 70 kilometres from Gaza, the occupation army said.
‘Full responsibility’
Occupation army spokesman Jonathan Conricus was dismissive of the disavowal of the rocket fire by Hamas and its allies, saying the group bears “full responsibility” for the medium-range rockets fired.
“Only two organisations in Gaza have these specific types of rockets ... Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad,” he said.
“Which of the organisations (fired) is not relevant from our point of view.”
In response, Conricus said they struck 20 targets in Gaza.
One Palestinian, the occupation army said, was killed in northern Gaza. The Gaza Health Ministry identified him as Naji Al Za’aneen, 25. It did not give further details.
The regime’s Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman ordered the closure of both of Israel’s border posts with Gaza, making the heavily restricted Rafah border post with Egypt the enclave’s sole gateway to the outside world.
Fuel deliveries stopped
Lieberman already suspended deliveries of fuel that had been trucked daily into Gaza under a deal brokered by the United Nations. The UN says Israel’s 11-year blockade has caused a “catastrophic” situation. Gaza’s two million residents endure routine power cuts and a chronic water shortage.