Palestinian group claims to fire rocket from Jenin area at northern Israel town
Footage shows projectile fired from northern West Bank; IDF says remains found near Palestinian town
Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
Palestinians in the northern West Bank attempted to launch a homemade rocket at a nearby Israeli town on Thursday morning, the military said, the latest in a series of mostly unsuccessful attempts.
A group calling itself the Al-Ayyash Battalion — apparently named for a notorious Hamas bombmaker killed by Israel — claimed it had launched the rocket from the Jenin area at the Israeli town of Ram-On, which borders the West Bank security barrier.
A video published by the group on Telegram showed a projectile mounted on a launcher, before it was apparently launched.
The Israel Defense Forces said that troops located the remains of the rocket in Palestinian-controlled territory, near the town of Silat al-Harithiya, saying that it had not crossed the border into Israel.
Army sappers safely removed the projectile, the IDF said.
Al-Ayyash Battalion has claimed to have launched several rockets at settlements and towns in northern Israel in recent months, publishing footage of the attempts.
The group’s rocket launching attempts have largely failed, with the rockets containing no explosives and flying distances of less than 100 meters (328 feet), according to the IDF.
A group calling itself the Al-Ayyash Battalion claims to have launched a rocket from the northern West Bank toward the Israeli town of Ram-On. No reports of damage in the attack. IDF scanning the area. pic.twitter.com/OIwXI5akDv
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) July 27, 2023
However, on July 9, security forces found the remains of a rocket in Ram-On, indicating that terrorists in the northern West Bank possess the capability to launch rockets at further distances than initially assessed.
The exact date of that launch was unclear.
Military sources have said there was a known suspect behind the attempts, and it was not linked to any known terror group, despite the apparent affiliation with Hamas.
During a major IDF raid in the West Bank city of Jenin earlier this month, the military said troops located and seized a makeshift rocket, among other weapons.
In May, Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar said security forces had foiled attempts by Palestinians in the northern West Bank to manufacture rockets to be launched at Israel.
Bar said the efforts were led by a senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader who was killed by Israel in the Gaza Strip during a five-day flareup in violence last month.
