IAF aircraft struck a terror target in northern Gaza early Wednesday morning, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit announced in a statement.

The statement said direct hits were identified and all aircraft returned safely to their bases.

Overnight Tuesday, IAF aircraft struck six terror targets throughout Gaza.

The air strikes came in response to the barrage of rockets that were fired toward southern Israel by terrorists in Hamas-controlled Gaza. 45 terrorist rockets slammed into southern Israel between midnight on Tuesday and 3:30 a.m. Wednesday morning.

At least ten additional rockets were fired by terrorists in the overnight hours Tuesday. In one case, an exploding rocket caused damage to a building. There were no physical injuries.

Most of the rockets were of the short range Qassam type but three Grad missiles were fired at Netivot. In one attack on Tuesday evening, four Border Police officers were hurt, one of them seriously.

Wednesday morning’s IAF strike marks the fifth such air strike in the last 24 hours. At least six terrorists were killed in previous strikes. An IAF strike Tuesday afternoon severely injured a man who was on a motorcycle, Gaza sources said.

On Tuesday, Hamas took responsibility for the rocket fire at the Negev. It said it was trying to hit the IDF’s Zikim base, and that the rockets were a response to IAF strikes.

The two terrorists who infiltrated Israel Monday were a Saudi citizen and an Egyptian belonging to a hitherto unknown group called the Shura Council of the Mujahedeen at Al Quds, Associated Press reported. The two appear in a video made public by the group in which they can be seen reading their final wills before launching the attack.

In a leaflet published along with the video, the group dedicates the attack to the Al Aqsa Mosque, Arab terror prisoners held in Israel, and Osama bin Laden.

The terrorists killed a 36-year-old Defense Ministry worker from Haifa before being killed themselves.

View original Arutz Sheva publication at: http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/157048#.T-GO4PUhrrc