Residents gather next to the rubble of a destroyed building in the Shejaiya neighbourhood of Gaza, on Aug. 7, 2014.
The renewed rocket fire is “unacceptable, intolerable and shortsighted,” army spokesman Peter Lerner said in an e-mailed statement. “We will continue to strike Hamas, its infrastructure, its operatives and restore security.”
Sami Abu Zuhri, a spokesman for Hamas, the militant group that runs Gaza, denied it was responsible for two rockets that the army said hit Israel hours before the 72-hour cease-fire expired at 8 a.m. Two other groups operating from Gaza claimed later rockets, which the army said totaled 18. Israel contends that as the dominant force in Gaza, Hamas can control other militants.
The resumption of fighting prolongs a conflict that Gaza’s health ministry says has killed at least 1,868 Palestinians, the majority of them civilians. Israel says militants account for between 750 and 1,000 of the Palestinian dead. Sixty-seven people have
died on the Israeli side, all but three of them soldiers.
While Israel withdrew troops from Gaza on Aug. 5 after an offensive it said aimed to end the rocket fire and destroy tunnels militants used to stage attacks, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the army remains outside the territory, ready to deal with any cease-fire violation.
Militants have fired thousands of rockets into Israel, where two civilians and a Thai worker have also died since fighting escalated in early July. Israel’s artillery and air strikes razed thousands of Palestinian homes and damaged hospitals, United Nations shelters housing the displaced, and power and water infrastructure.
Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon told the military to respond “forcefully” to today’s rocket barrage, Channel 2 television reported, citing officials it didn’t identify.
No comments:
Post a Comment