Israel retaliates against militant targets in Gaza Strip hours after rocket attacks

A day after rockets were fired from Gaza, Israel's military on Sunday announced that it launched strikes against militant targets in the Hamas-ruled territory. According to AP, a video filmed in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, showed three huge explosions. Israeli fighter jets were also heard flying overhead. There was no confirmation on possible casualties, authorities informed. 

As per reports, the Israeli military said that the attacks targeted a rocket manufacturing facility and a military post for Hamas. The Jewish state blamed the militant Islamic group for any violence emanating from the territory it controls. The attack came in retaliation for two rockets from Gaza on Saturday, which landed in the Mediterranean Sea off central Israel. There were no reports of casualties from Saturday's rocket launches. 

It is pertinent to mention that apart from a single incident in September, there has been no cross-border rocket fire since a cease-fire ended a 11-day war between the two sides in May. The cease-fire was brokered by Egypt and other mediators, but it still remains fragile. The militant Hamas group has repeatedly said that Israel did not take serious steps to ease the blockade it imposed on Gaza when the Islamic movement seized control of the coastal enclave in 2007. 

Gantz-Abbas' once-in-a-decade meeting

Meanwhile, Israel and Palestine have been engulfed in decades of conflict and contestation over territory, particularly Jerusalem, which both of them claim as their capital. Earlier this week, in a rare move, Israel's Defence Minister Benny Gantz approved a raft of measures aimed at improving relations with Palestine.

The new measures, which came following Gantz's meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, focused on 'confidence-building' and catered to issues such as taxes and the residency status of the Arabs. 

A statement from Gantz's office said that the measures included the transfer of tax payments to the Palestinian Authority, the authorization of hundreds of permits for Palestinian Merchants & VIPs, and approving residency status for thousands of Palestinians in both the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

It is pertinent to note that the Jewish regime collects millions of dollars worth of taxes on behalf of the Palestinian Authority (PA) as a part of an agreement inked in the 1990s. While the taxes have the potential of pulling out the cash strapped region from what Palestinians call economic crisis, Israel has withheld the funds asserting that the money could incentivize terror organisations including Hamas.

(Image: AP)