A day after Israeli troops killed nine Palestinians, among them an elderly woman, at the Jenin refugee camp, one of the worst military operations by Israel in recent memory in the occupied West Bank, Israel has conducted many airstrikes on the blockaded Gaza Strip.
It was the region’s worst single raid in more than 20 years. The escalation in violence puts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right administration to the test early on and casts doubt on U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s anticipated visit to the area next week.
The military reported that of the five rockets fired at Israel, three were intercepted, one landed in the open, and another missed its target inside Gaza. According to the report, militant training areas as well as a Hamas underground missile production facility were the targets of the bombings. Air raid sirens were activated in southern Israel by the rockets, however, neither side was reported to have suffered any casualties.
In response to two rockets being fired towards Israel at around midnight, the Israeli army said that it launched airstrikes on Gaza, one of the world’s most densely populated places with 2.1 million inhabitants (22:00 GMT).
Southern Israel had heard air raid sirens both during the initial two rocket launches and again during the Israeli airstrikes.
Israeli interceptor missiles were seen being fired into the night sky over Ashkelon, a city located approximately 12 kilometres (7 miles) north of Gaza, according to a video broadcast by Channel of the country. The Israeli army said that Israel’s air defence system destroyed the rockets. No organisation has taken ownership of the alleged rocket fire.
Nine individuals were killed by Israeli forces during an assault on the Jenin refugee camp, which was followed by airstrikes and rocket fire from Israel. One of the worst days in the occupied West Bank since Israel increased raids at the beginning of 2021, at least 20 Palestinians were also hurt.
Additionally, Israeli security forces shot a 22-year-old Palestinian man in the village of al-Ram, which is located north of Jerusalem. Four of the victims of the raid were in serious condition, and among the dead was an old woman named Magda Obaid by officials of the Jenin hospital.
