The toll in the Hamas rocket fire from the Gaza Strip into Israel
climbed to 4 on Saturday, reported The Times of Israel.
The daily reported earlier that after a barrage of rocket fire from
the Gaza Strip, Hamas fighters infiltrated Israel.
The mayor of Kuseife, Abd al-Aziz Nassara, confirmed the toll,
adding that several more have been wounded as the rockets from Gaza rained on
the town. Kuseife, a Bedouin town in southern Israel, is located around 65
kilometres from the Gaza Strip.
According to reports, a woman was killed earlier in the rocket
attack and there are multiple injuries as well.
Following the attack, red alert warning sirens were activated in
Tel Aviv, located around 70 kilometres from the Gaza Strip, as well as, Sde
Boker, Arad, and Dimona in the south.
Residents living across these areas heard the massive explosions,
according to The Times of Israel.
Meanwhile, Opposition leader Yair Lapid received a security
briefing from the Israeli Prime Minister’s military secretary, Avi Gil,
following the attack.
“Israel is in an emergency” and Lapid would back a “harsh military
response” to Hamas’s coordinated attack, said a statement from the Opposition
leader’s office.
Apart from the woman, who died of her wounds, the injured included
a 52-year-old man from Gederot, who was moderately injured, and a 20-year-old
man from Yavne, who also sustained minor injuries. Both victims were
transferred to Kaplan Hospital, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The Israel Defense Forces, meanwhile, declared a state of readiness
for war following the attack.
“There has been widespread rocket fire into Israeli territory from
Gaza, and terrorists have infiltrated Israeli territory through various entry
points. Residents in the south and centre of the country are required to be in
close proximity to protected areas, and those in the Gaza periphery should
remain within a secure space,” the IDF added in its statement.
The IDF said it was carrying out retaliatory airstrikes in the Gaza
Strip. The strikes come nearly two hours after Hamas launched a surprise
attack, reported the Israeli daily.
The Israel Defence Forces has closed the roads near the Gaza Strip
border as Hamas’s rocket fires in Israel, according to The Times of Israel.
The closed roads include, Route 4 from the Zikim junction to Netiv
Ha’asara; Route 34 from the Yad Mordechai junction to Nir Am; and Route 232
from Mefalsim to Sa’ad and Nir Yitzhak to Kerem Shalom.
The Army said it has also closed all routes used by farmers in the
area.
Additionally, the Zikim beach on the Gaza border is also closed
off, reported The Times of Israel.
Further, according to the IDF, the trains will not run between
Ashkelon and Sderot.
ANI
