School canceled in Beersheba and Ashdod following overnight rocket attacks
Three treated for shock as two Grads hit southern towns; empty Netivot house suffers direct hit
School was canceled for students in Beeresheba and Ashdod Sunday after two Grad rockets were fired towards southern Israel from Gaza a little after 2 a.m. Sunday morning.
One rocket scored a direct hit on a home in the southern city of Netivot. The house was empty and there were no reports of serious injuries.
A neighboring house was damaged from shrapnel. Pini Azouly, who was at home when the rocket took out his neighbor’s house, said he was saved from injury by finding shelter in his bathroom.
A second rocket landed in an open area in Beersheba.
Three people were taken to Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba to be treated for shock.
At around 8 a.m. sirens went off in the Ashkelon region, but there were no reports of explosions or damage.
No organization has claimed responsibility for the attacks, but they are believed to be the actions of extremist terrorists associated to the Global Jihad network. In recent weeks the Hamas government in Gaza has attempted to crack down on extremist groups and prevent fire on Israel.
Schools in Netivot remained open, but Beersheba Mayor Ruvik Danilovich said he was implementing his municipality’s policy of canceling school whenever the city suffers attacks.
“There is too much uncertainty and I must act responsibly,” Danilovich told Army Radio. “Since many of the schools are unprotected and we have experienced hits on our education institutions in the past, I made the decision after consulting with defense establishment officials. 40,000 children will remain at home today because of the attack that hit us out of the blue.”
Ashdod’s mayor announced he was canceling studies as well due to the attacks.
Netivot Mayor Yehiel Zohar told Army Radio that life in his city had returned to normal. He explained that his decision to operate schools as usual was in accordance with defense establishment recommendations.
“We have grown accustomed to such incidents and put our trust in the national authorities to provide solutions,” said Zohar.
The attacks come four days after the Israel Defense Forces carried out an air sortie against terror targets in Gaza, killing three people.
The three men killed in Gaza were reportedly attempting to lay an explosive device at the border fence with Israel. The army said they had been involved in shooting rockets into Israel in the past.
There has been an uptick in rocket fire from Gaza in the last several weeks.
On Friday, two rockets landed in open areas in the Sdot Negev region.
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The Times of Israel Community.