Israel announced Sunday that it had killed a senior Islamic Jihad commander in a crowded Gaza refugee camp. Attacks against extremist groups just before the weekend.
Iran-backed militant groups responded by firing hundreds of rockets into Israel, risking the cross-border fighting escalating into full-blown war.
READ MORE: Israel-Gaza Conflict: Militants engage in firefight after deadly attack
Having fought the 11-Day War with Israel in May 2021, it is now reluctant, possibly because it fears Israeli retaliation and undermines its economic deal with Israel.
Islamic Jihad commander Khaled Mansour was killed late Saturday in an air strike on an apartment building in Rafah refugee camp in southern Gaza. Two other militants and five civilians were also killed.
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Seven more died on Sunday, bringing the number of Palestinian deaths to his 36 people. Among the dead were 11 children and his four women. The Palestinian Ministry of Health said more than 311 people had been injured since Friday.
Israel said some of the deaths were caused by erroneous rocket fire, including one incident in Jebariya refugee camp in northern Gaza where six Palestinians were killed on Saturday. On Sunday, two men were killed when a projectile hit a house in the same area of Jebaliyah. The Palestinians held Israel responsible, but Israel said it was investigating whether the area had been hit by a false rocket.
"Suddenly, without warning, the house next door was bombed, and in an instant everything was black and covered with smoke.
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Another neighbor, Ahmed al-Qaissi, said his wife and son were among the injured, with shrapnel injuries. Al-Qaesi agreed to demolish part of his home to make way for rescue workers.
As Mansur's funeral began in the Gaza Strip on Sunday afternoon, Israeli forces said: It said it was suspected of attacking an "Islamic Jihad rocket launcher". Smoke was visible from the strike as Gaza rattled and exploded. Israeli airstrikes and rocket attacks continued for hours, with sirens blaring across central Israel. Sirens blared as far north as Tel Aviv on Sunday night as the call to prayer rang out in Gaza at sunset.
The Israeli Defense Ministry said mortars fired from Gaza hit the Erez border crossing into Israel and were used by thousands of Gazans in a single day. Mortars damaged the roof and shrapnel hit the entrance to the hall, the ministry said. The crossing was closed during the fighting.
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Rafah's attack is the deadliest yet in the current round of combat launched by Israel on Friday It was It targeted and killed an Islamic Jihad commander in northern Gaza.
READ MORE: Here's what you need to know about the current Israeli-Gaza conflict
Israel says it has taken action against militant groups because of the specific threat of imminent attack, but has not provided details.Experienced diplomat but oversees war Inexperienced caretaker Prime Minister Yair Lapid launched an offensive three months before the general election and campaigned to retain the job.
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In a statement on Sunday, Rapid said its forces would continue to strike targets in Gaza. Minimize harm to non-combatants. Rapid said the strike that killed Mansur was an "extraordinary achievement".
"The operation will continue as long as necessary," Rapid said.
Israel estimates that about 15 militants were killed in the airstrikes.
Islamic Jihad has fewer fighters and supporters than Hamas, and little is known about its arsenal. are constrained by the demands of government.
The Israeli military said militants in Gaza had fired about 580 rockets into Israel. The military said its air defense systems intercepted many of them, two of his planes being shot down and fired towards Jerusalem. Islamic Jihad has fewer fighters and followers than Hamas.
Sunday for the first time since last year's Israeli-Hamas war when air raid sirens sounded in the Jerusalem area.
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Jerusalem is typically a flashpoint during the cross-border fighting between Israel and Gaza. On Sunday, hundreds of Jews, including seditious ultranationalist lawmaker Itamar Ben Gubir, marched to the sensitive holy site of Jerusalem, known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as a noble sanctuary. I visited Police said the visit ended successfully under close police protection.
Such demonstrative visits by Israeli hardliners seeking to underline Israeli sovereignty claims over disputed Jerusalem have sparked violence in the past. Located on the fault line of the conflict, it is at the center of the conflicting narratives of Palestinian and Israeli Jews.
In Palestinian cities and towns in the West Bank, Israeli security forces said he had detained 19 people during overnight raids on suspicion of belonging to Islamic Jihad.
The fighting began with Israel killing a senior Islamic Jihad commander in a series of attacks on Friday that Israel said were intended to prevent an imminent attack.
By Sunday, Hamas still appeared to be away from the scene. Fight. Groups have strong incentives to avoid another war. Last year's Israeli-Hamas war, one of his four major conflicts over the past 15 years, and several smaller ones, have taken a toll on her 2.3 million Palestinians in impoverished areas. caused damage.
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Since the last war, Israel and Hamas have kept their cool and imposed border closures in exchange for work permits. A tacit understanding was reached by Israel and Egypt 15 years ago when Hamas invaded the territory to ease slightly. Israel has issued 12,000 of his work permits to Gaza workers, and he expects to give 2,000 more.
Gaza's lone power plant shut down at noon Saturday due to a fuel shortage. Israel has continued to close crossings to Gaza since Tuesday. New disruptions have left Gazans with only four hours of electricity in his day, increasing reliance on private generators and jeopardizing the region's chronic power crisis amid peak summer heat. It has turned into.
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Ben Zion reported from Jerusalem.
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