False rocket alerts sound in southern communities

Israeli army says alarms likely triggered by missile test within Gaza Strip, as calm holds

Rocket alarms sounded in two Israel towns outside Gaza Sunday morning, breaking several weeks of calm and sending residents scurrying for shelter.

Despite the scare, the Israeli military said the alarm sounded after a missile test within the Strip, labeling the alerts as false alarms, Israel’s Channel 10 news reported.

The alarms sounded in towns of Nirim, Kisufim and Ein Hashlosha, in the Eshkol region bordering the center of the Strip

Initial Israeli media reports indicated no explosion was heard by area residents.

The area has been calm for over a month, since Israel and Gaza ended a 50-day war in late August. There have been a handful of cases of false alarms over the past weeks, mostly from fire within the Strip, but the shaky quiet in the area has mostly held since the end of the punishing military campaign.

In mid-September, a mortar was fired at Israel from Gaza, but did not cause injuries or damage.

Hamas, which rules the Strip, denied responsibility and said it had arrested the rocket launchers.

Israel and a number of Gazan factions are set to hold indirect ceasefire talks in Cairo later this month. The negotiations are slated to include discussions over a long-term quiet in return for an easing of Israel’s blockade on the Strip.

The alarm came as Gazans celebrated Eid al-Adha, one of the biggest holidays of the Muslim calendar, and a day after Israeli Jews wrapped up Yom Kippur, the most solemn day of the year for Jews.

The clash of the two holidays had raised tensions, and Israeli security forces had upped patrols and imposed a blockade on the West Bank and Gaza over Friday and Saturday, though no incidents were reported.

During the Gaza military campaign, Israel launched several thousand air strikes and unleashed artillery barrages at Hamas-linked targets in Gaza, flattening entire neighborhoods. Hamas fired thousands of rockets and mortar shells at Israeli communities during the fighting.

Gazan officials said some 2,100 people were killed in the fighting, a number Jerusalem contends includes nearly 1,000 fighters. On the Israeli side, 72 people were killed.