Rocket barrage rains on southern Israel
Salvoes fired from Gaza land in Eshkol region, no injuries reported
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Seven rockets and mortars were fired from Gaza into the Eshkol region of southern Israel Tuesday night.
No injuries nor damage were reported.
The rocket fire came hours after the emir of Qatar become the first foreign leader to visit the Strip since Hamas took over the territory in 2007.
The IDF said it had temporarily suspended operations in the territory during the visit, according to Channel 2 news.
Earlier on Tuesday, an Israeli officer was seriously wounded when a roadside bomb exploded next to his patrol on the border with Gaza.
On Monday Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to protect Israel from missile fire by striking at terrorists and preventing them from rearming, in a response to ongoing rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
“We’re not going to let anyone arm themselves and fire rockets on us and think that they can do this with impunity,” Netanyahu told visiting ex-British prime minister Tony Blair. “They’re not going to get away with it. We attacked them before, we attacked them after and we’re going to prevent them from arming themselves. This is our policy. This is a very different policy that I put in. You don’t let them get away with it. And they know that’s what we’re doing.”
On Monday morning, the Israeli air force attacked a rocket launching squad in the northern part of the Gaza Strip, killing three, including two confirmed terrorists. The strike came in response to rocket fire on southern Israel from Gaza and a mortar attack on an IDF patrol.
Raphael Ahren contributed to this report
The Times of Israel Community.