Israeli aircraft launched airstrikes on targets in Gaza early Sunday in response to the launch of a missile from the territory towards areas in Israel, according to Palestinian and Israeli sources. A security source in Gaza stated that "the occupation planes fired several missiles at a resistance site in Khan Younis (southern Gaza) and also targeted an empty area near the airport south of Rafah in the southern strip." An eyewitness reported that Israeli planes also carried out a strike on an empty area in the middle of the Gaza Strip. The Israeli airstrikes did not result in any casualties, according to Palestinian medical sources.
The Israeli army confirmed in a statement that its aircraft "targeted a workshop for manufacturing weapons belonging to Hamas, which constitutes a central site for producing most of the movement's rockets. The warplanes also targeted a Hamas tunnel in southern Gaza." The statement indicated that the Israeli airstrikes were in response to a missile fired from Gaza toward southern Israel, clarifying that they targeted "the capabilities of building strength and armament of Hamas in the Gaza Strip."
On Saturday evening, a missile launched from the strip landed in an uninhabited area in southern Israel, without causing any injuries or damage, according to a statement from the Israeli army. No group immediately claimed responsibility for the missile launch. However, the "#Islamic Jihad" movement threatened Israel with retaliation after the assassination of two of its leaders on Thursday in Jenin in the occupied West Bank.
The missile launch, the first in a month according to the army, followed the killing of Palestinian Ammar Hadi Muflih (22 years old) by Israeli forces at the entrance of the city of Nablus in the northern West Bank under unclear circumstances. Concurrently with the Israeli bombardment, Palestinians launched two more missiles at towns in southern Israel, according to eyewitnesses and Palestinian security sources.
"We will not allow a change in the equations," declared the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades (the armed wing of Hamas) in a statement, asserting that "its air defenses intercepted hostile Israeli warplanes in the skies of Gaza early Sunday with surface-to-air missiles and ground artillery." For his part, Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem stated in a statement that "the Qassam Brigades' repulsion of the Israeli aggression on Gaza and the direct response to the occupation's airstrikes confirms that they will not allow the occupation to change the equations and will continue to defend their people wherever they are."
He added that "the Israeli enemy is expanding its aggression against our people with its brutal bombardment of Gaza after its crime yesterday in executing the martyr Ammar Muflih in Hawara. This Israeli terrorism and Nazi behavior will not stop our people's blazing revolution." While Israeli border guards stated that the young man attempted to stab one of their members, a Palestinian official reported that he was killed during a scuffle.
The Israeli border guards stated in an Arabic statement: "A number of suspects approached the border police forces working in the area (Hawara), and suddenly a terrorist pulled out a knife and stabbed one of the officers." The statement added, "The officers responded by shooting the suspect and neutralizing him, and the officer, who suffered minor injuries, was evacuated for medical treatment."
The UN Special Envoy for Peace in the Middle East, Tor Wennesland, tweeted that he was "horrified by the assassination" following a "clash with an Israeli soldier." The spokesperson for the Israeli Foreign Ministry responded on Twitter, describing Wennesland's reaction as "a complete distortion of the truth." They stated, "This incident was a terrorist attack during which an Israeli policeman was stabbed in the face, threatening the life of another officer. Therefore, the assailant was shot. This is not a clash, but a terrorist attack!"
For his part, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid affirmed his "full support" for the border guard commander who killed the Palestinian, believing that it "saved lives." Lapid stated on Twitter, "Any attempt to distort the truth and narrate a false account in the world is frankly shameful... Our security forces will continue to act decisively against terrorism." Meanwhile, the European Union considered the events "unacceptable" and called for an investigation.
