Gaza naval bases hit by Israeli airstrikes

A series of incidents in recent days, including the exchange of rocket fire, has tested a fragile truce between Hamas and Israel.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab & agencies

21 August, 2019

Israeli warplanes hit the port in Khan Yunis, Gaza in June [Anadolu/Getty]

Israeli planes have struck a Hamas naval base in the Gaza Strip after a rocket was fired into southern Israel from the territory.

The military said early Thursday that several targets at the base in southern Gaza City had been hit.

This was in response to a rocket which was fired from the blockaded Gaza Strip at southern Israel late Wednesday, the fifth in the past six days.

It did not report any casualties or damage or say where the rocket hit, but Israeli media said it had been tracked as heading for open ground and alarms were therefore not sounded in built-up areas.

The tit-for-tat exchange has shattered weeks of a tense calm along the volatile Gaza-Israel border.

The army said three rockets were launched from Hamas-ruled Gaza on Saturday night and one was fired late Friday.

There were no casualties in any of the attacks or in the retaliatory Israeli air strikes on Gaza which followed.

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They were among a series of incidents along the Gaza border since the start of the month.

On Sunday the Palestinian health ministry said three Palestinians were killed by Israeli soldiers overnight in the northern Gaza Strip.

The Israeli army had said earlier that an attack helicopter and tank fired at "a number of armed suspects adjacent to the (border) fence in the northern Gaza Strip."

A week ago, a Palestinian shot at Israeli soldiers along the frontier and was killed when troops returned fire, the army and Hamas's health ministry said.

A day earlier, Israel's army said its troops shot dead four heavily armed Palestinians on the border, adding one had managed to cross and throw a grenade at soldiers.

On August 1, a Palestinian seeking to avenge his brother's death by Israeli fire entered Israel from Gaza and opened fire on soldiers, the army said.

Three Israeli soldiers were wounded and the Palestinian was killed, the army said.

Regular protests and clashes erupted along the border of the besieged Gaza Strip in March 2018.

At least 305 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire in Gaza since then, the majority during demonstrations and clashes.

Seven Israelis have also been killed in Gaza-related violence over the same period.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is widely seen as wanting to avoid an escalation in the Gaza Strip before September 17 elections, but he also faces heavy political pressure to respond firmly.

Israel and Palestinian militants in Gaza, including Hamas, have fought three wars since 2008.