Emergency Sirens Triggered in Ashkelon Area by Incoming Gaza Rocket

—– SPECIAL SECURITY REPORT —–

A rocket fired at Israel from Gaza on Saturday night triggered air raid sirens in the Ashkelon and Hof Ashkelon regions. The projectile apparently exploded in an open area, and security forces said they had begun to search for the rocket .

gaza rocket

Rocket fired from the Gaza Strip toward Israel. – File Photo: REUTERS

The incident comes two days after the Israel Air Force struck Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for two Gazan rockets fired into southern Israel.

Speaking after last week’s incident, Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon said Israel holds Hamas responsible for anything that happens in the Gaza Strip.

“Even if the shooters last night were jihadist groups rebelling against Hamas by firing at us, we view Hamas as being responsible for everything that occurs in the territory of Gaza,” the defense minister said.

A radical jihadi-Salafi group – the Omar Brigades – claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it was in response to Hamas killing an Islamic State supporter during a recent raid on his home.

At the end of May, Palestinian Islamic Jihad fired a rocket that exploded in the Gan Yavne region, east of Ashdod, shattering four weeks of quiet and setting off air raid sirens in the Ashdod and Lakhish regions.

A15-year-old girl was taken to Barzilai Medical Center in Ashkelon suffering from shock.

The IAF responded by striking four Islamic Jihad and Hamas targets. According to Palestinian reports, Hamas made arrests of Islamic Jihad members following the incident.

 

View original The Jerusalem Post publication at: http://www.jpost.com/Arab-Israeli-Conflict/Rocket-fired-from-Gaza-lands-in-Hof-Ashkelon-region-405223