A witness and Israeli media reported this Sunday, October 19, of two Israeli airstrikes in the southern Gaza Strip where, according to an Israeli military official, the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas targeted soldiers.
“Fighter planes carried out two airstrikes on Rafah” in an “area under Israeli military control,” one witness told AFP, while a second spoke of “clashes” between Hamas and another Palestinian armed group in an area “under Israeli military control.”
According to an Israeli military source, Hamas carried out “several attacks against Israeli forces, including “grenade launcher fire” and “sniper fire” in “an Israeli-controlled area.”
Netanyahu orders action “with force”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the army to act “with force” against “terrorist” targets in the Gaza Strip, accusing Hamas of violating the ceasefire in force since October 10.
“Following the violation of the ceasefire by Hamas, Prime Minister Netanyahu held a consultation with the Minister of Defense and security officials and ordered strong measures against terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip,” the Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement.
Hamas says it has “no knowledge of incidents”
The armed wing of Hamas assured this Sunday that it was implementing the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip and was not aware of clashes in Rafah, in the south of the Palestinian territory.
“We reaffirm our full commitment to implement everything agreed upon, first of all a ceasefire in all areas of the Gaza Strip,” the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades said in a statement.
“We are not aware of any incidents or clashes taking place in the Rafah region, as these are red zones under the control of the occupation (Israel, editor’s note), and contact with the rest of our groups there has been cut since the resumption of the war in March,” the statement added.
Two dead in northern Gaza Strip
In Khan Yunis, witnesses said they heard the sound of airstrikes on Rafah on Sunday. Local health authorities in Gaza said on Sunday that two Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Jabalia area of the northern Gaza Strip.
A senior Hamas official said the Palestinian group remained committed to the ceasefire agreement, accusing Israel of repeatedly violating it. According to a Saturday count by the Gaza authorities’ press service, Israel has violated the ceasefire agreement 47 times, killing 38 people and wounding 143 others since the truce came into effect on October 11.
The Israeli government and the Palestinian group have been accusing each other of ceasefire violations for days, and the Jewish state has said the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt will remain closed until further notice.
Hamas and Israel last week agreed to a gradual peace deal, under US auspices, under which the Palestinian group must, among other things, release hostages, proceed with its disarmament and relinquish power in the Gaza Strip.
Source: BFM TV
