Israel blames Hamas for all attacks from Gaza
In fresh round of violence, Palestinians launch two rockets, prompting Israeli military to strike Hamas training camps.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has blamed Hamas, the group that governs Gaza, for any attacks from the Palestinian enclave amid fresh violence on both sides.
Israel’s military launched a pair of air strikes on Thursday after two rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel, officials said. The cross-border violence, which injured two Palestinians, followed a deadly flareup earlier this week.
Israel holds Hamas responsible for all the attacks launched on us.
“Israel holds Hamas responsible for all the attacks launched on us,” Netanyahu said at a pilots’ graduation ceremony at the Hatzerim air force base in southern Israel. “We will strike at those who attack us, and at those who support them.”
Confrontations between the two sides peaked on Tuesday, when a sniper inside the Gaza Strip killed an Israeli fixing the border fence. The sniper attack has been attributed to a small Palestinian faction unrelated to Hamas.
Israel hit back against Hamas training camps in Gaza using warplanes and tanks, killing a toddler and wounding at least six people.
The rockets fired on Thursday by Palestinians in Gaza fell in open areas, causing no damage or injuries, officials said.
Israel’s military said its latest strike hit two Palestinian weapons facilities, while medical sources in Gaza told Al Jazeera that two Palestinians were wounded in a series of five strikes at empty training camps.
Israel, meanwhile, is expected to announce plans for new settlement construction next week, coinciding with the release of a third batch of Palestinian prisoners as part of peace talks, an official said on Thursday.