IAF strikes Gaza in response to rocket fire

In shadow of search for missing teens, military reports direct hits on several weapons facilities in the Strip

An Israeli aircraft struck four “terror activity” sites in the Gaza Strip overnight Monday-Tuesday, following rocket fire into Israel in the evening hours, the IDF spokesperson’s office said in a statement.

The IDF reported direct hits including on “a weapon manufacturing facility in the northern Gaza Strip and two weapon storage facilities in the central and southern Gaza Strip.”

A rocket landed in an open field near Ashkelon Monday evening.

Early Monday, struck several sites in Gaza, according to a statement released by the IDF spokesperson’s office.

The IDF said the strikes were a response to a rocket attack from Gaza on Sunday evening.

Direct hits were confirmed, according to the statement. .

On Sunday, Israeli forces positioned an Iron Dome anti-missile battery outside the southern coastal city of Ashdod, in response to an escalation in rocket fire from Gaza over the weekend.

The move came hours after Israeli planes pounded several sites in the Gaza Strip Sunday, in retaliation for rockets fired earlier in the day.

Ashdod, a city of some 200,000, sits several kilometers from the Gaza Strip and has been targeted with rockets in the past.

On Saturday, rockets were fired toward Ashkelon, all of which landed in open fields and did not cause any injuries or damage.

On Thursday, a rocket fired from Gaza damaged a road in the Eshkol region.

Also on Sunday, as part of procedures implemented by Israel in response to the kidnapping Thursday of three West Bank teenagers, the crossings between Gaza and Israel were closed indefinitely.

Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.

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