Israel’s military has launched a series of air strikes on Palestinian positions in Gaza after a barrage of rocket fire – the biggest in years – from the Strip amid soaring frustration in the coastal enclave over a crippling 12-year Israeli-imposed siege.
Israeli warplanes on Tuesday hit more than 35 targets belonging to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, according to Israel’s military. The strikes came after the Israeli army said Palestinian fighters were behind a “barrage of projectiles” fired from Gaza into southern Israel.
The firing of the rockets and mortars came as Islamic Jihad vowed to take revenge after a deadly attack against its members last week.
In a statement, the armed wings of Hamas and Islamic Jihad said their “joint response with dozens of rockets at the occupation’s military positions … is a declaration that these crimes cannot be tolerated in any way”.
Al-Qassam Brigades and al-Quds Brigades blamed Israel for Israel’s “aggression against our people” which it described as “an attempt to shift attention away from the crimes it carried out against our peaceful civilians”.
Al Jazeera reported that since March 30, at least 121 unarmed Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces in protests near the fence with Israel, in which they are demanding their right to return to the homes and lands; their families were expelled from during the establishment of Israel.
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