The Israeli military said Palestinian terrorists fired two rockets from the Gaza Strip toward the town of Sderot on Monday afternoon in what appeared to be the first such attack since May’s 11-day conflict in the Palestinian enclave.
The Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted one of the rockets, while the second landed inside the Gaza Strip. The attack triggered sirens in Sderot, as well as the the communities of Ivim, Nir Am and Erez in the Sha’ar Hanegev region of southern Israel, according to the Israel Defense Forces.
“One launch was spotted from the Gaza Strip, which was shot down by air defense soldiers,” the IDF said in a statement.
No injuries or damage were reported in the rocket attack. The IDF did not immediately retaliate to the launches.
Video footage (above) from a surveillance camera inside Israel showed the two rockets being fired from an area near the border.
The launch came after repeated threats by Palestinian terror groups in recent weeks over the slow pace of Gaza reconstruction and the entrance of Qatari money into the Strip, following May’s conflict, known in Israel as Operation Guardian of the Walls.
The various terror groups in the Gaza Strip, chiefly Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad — known collectively as the joint operations room — were scheduled to gather later Monday to determine how to proceed in their ongoing ceasefire negotiations with Israel, but called off their meeting, apparently fearing an IDF strike.
Sha’ar Hanegev Mayor Ofir Liebstein called on the government to respond to the rocket launch, saying the attack was particularly heinous considering it took place in the middle of the day.
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