Two Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrikes on Gaza

An Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip killed two Palestinians on Saturday, health officials in the besieged territory said, following heightened tensions over claims to Jerusalem.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab & agencies

09 December, 2017

Palestine - Israeli airstrikes after rocket attack

An Israeli airstrike on the Gaza Strip killed two Palestinians on Saturday, health officials in the besieged territory said, as violence erupted this week between the two sides.

The pre-dawn airstrikes on a Hamas military base in Nuseirat in central Gaza came amid protests across the occupied Palestinian territories after US President Donald Trump's deeply controversial recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

A Palestinian man identified as Mahmoud al-Masry, 30, was killed by Israeli soldiers in the Gaza Strip during protests on Friday.

The airstrikes followed three rocket attacks late on Friday from Gaza into southern Israel.

The Israeli army said it targeted four facilities belonging to Hamas, including "two weapons manufacturing sites, a weapons warehouse and a military compound".

The Hamas health ministry in Gaza named the victims as Abdullah al-Atal, 28 and Mohammed al-Safdi, 30.

It said that their bodies were only recovered several hours after the pre-dawn strike on a base of Hamas' military wing in Nuseirat in the central Gaza Strip.

The militants did not say if the dead men were its members.

Israeli airstrikes on Gaza late on Friday injured 14 Palestinians, among them women and children, Hamas officials said.

They followed three rocket attacks, one of which hit the Israeli city of Sderot while another was intercepted by Israel's Iron Dome air defence system.

Another rocket was launched but failed to reach Israeli territory. There were no casualties from the rocket fire.

A previously unknown Salafi group calling itself the Salahedin Brigades claimed responsibility for one of the attacks.

The Israeli army said it held Hamas responsible for all "hostile activity" originating from the territory under its control.

Hundreds of Palestinians were injured on Friday during demonstrations across the occupied Palestinian territories.

Israeli troops responded to the protesters with violent force; firing tear gas, rubber bullets and live rounds to suppress public disorder.

Trump's Jerusalem decision ends seven decades of US ambiguity on the status of the Holy City, which is vociferously claimed by both Israelis and Palestinians, and his decision immediately caused a stir with US allies who condemned the move.

East Jerusalem, including the Old City, is considered occupied Palestinian territory under international law.

Protests have been taking place globally against Trump's decision including in Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Turkey, Malaysia, Indonesia, Egypt, Jordan.