Israel strikes Lebanon and Gaza following rocket assaults

Israeli strikes hit Lebanon and Gaza early on Friday, in response to rocket assaults it blamed on militant group Hamas.

Tensions have flared within the area following police raids on the al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem this week.

Blasts rocked totally different areas of Gaza, as Israel mentioned its planes hit targets together with tunnels and weapons manufacturing websites of Hamas, which controls the blockaded southern coastal strip.

The army mentioned it had additionally struck Hamas targets in southern Lebanon, the place residents across the space of the Rashidieh refugee camp reported three loud blasts.

The strikes got here in response to rocket assaults from Lebanon in direction of northern Israeli areas, which Israeli officers blamed on Hamas.

The Israeli army mentioned 34 rockets had been launched from Lebanon, of which 25 had been intercepted by air defence methods.

It was the largest such assault since 2006, when Israel fought a struggle with the Hezbollah motion.

“Israel’s response, tonight and later, will exact a significant price from our enemies,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu mentioned following a safety cupboard assembly.

As the Israeli jets struck in Gaza, rockets had been fired in response and sirens sounded in Israeli cities and cities in bordering areas, nonetheless there have been no stories of significant casualties.

The strikes got here amid an escalating confrontation over Israeli police raids on the al Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem throughout the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which this yr coincides with the Jewish Passover vacation.

In a press release, Hamas mentioned: “We hold the Zionist occupation fully responsible for the grave escalation and the flagrant aggression against the Gaza Strip and for the consequences that will bring onto the region.”

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The Israel Defence Force mentioned: “The IDF struck targets including terrorist infrastructures belonging to Hamas in southern Lebanon.

“The IDF won’t permit the Hamas terrorist organisation to function from inside Lebanon and maintain the state of Lebanon accountable for each directed fireplace emanating from its territory.”