Rockets fired at Israel from Gaza fall short, wounding 7 Palestinians

Seven Palestinians were reportedly wounded Wednesday when a rocket barrage from the Gaza Strip, aimed at Israel, exploded near a house inside the coastal enclave.

Palestinian eyewitnesses said two of the three rockets struck outside a home in the southern city of Rafah, and a third fell near the fence separating Israel and the Gaza Strip.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said seven people were wounded, but didn’t elaborate on their condition.

Also Wednesday evening, the army said a mortar shell was fired at Israel from Gaza, but appeared to have landed inside the enclave.

The attack did not trigger rocket sirens in any Israeli community, but did set off alarms in an open field in the Eshkol region of southern Israel, a regional spokesperson said.

“A failed launch from the Gaza Strip was detected. It did not cross into Israeli territory,” the army said.

The attack came amid ongoing tensions between Israel and terror groups in the Strip, following multiple rocket attacks last week.

On Friday, several thousand Palestinians protested along the Gaza border, hours after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that war with terror groups in the Gaza Strip could break out “at any moment.”

Some 4,000 people took part in the demonstrations, with several hundred rioting and throwing rocks and explosive devices at Israel Defense Forces troops who responded with tear gas and occasional live fire.

The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry said 30 people had been wounded, including 15 from live fire.

Rockets have been fired at Israeli cities and communities multiple times this month — with most intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system or landing in open areas — drawing retaliatory Israeli airstrikes. On September 10, two rockets were launched at Ashdod and Ashkelon during a campaign rally in Ashdod by the prime minister, who was whisked off the stage by his bodyguards to take shelter.