Alwaght- Israeli fighter jets have carried out airstrikes on Gaza Strip early on Thursday morning.
The Israeli regime’s air force has targeted the north and south of the Palestinian area, under all-out Israeli blockade for over a decade. Khan Yunis, Rafah, and other neighborhoods were the main hit areas.
The fighters, the Israeli media reported, targeted Hamas movement positions in the enclave after a rocket fired into the occupied territories. The projectile, however, landed in an open area, after the much-vaunted Israeli air defense system Iron Dome, specially designed to address such attacks, failed to intercept the rocket.
Earlier on Wednesday, Israel's air force also struck an area in Gaza it claimed was used to launch "incendiary balloons" into the occupied territories, Iran’s Press TV reported.
Tel Aviv media say that upon detecting an attack, the Israeli army fired an interceptor in response from the Iron Dome anti-rocket defense system, but it apparently failed to intercept.
Gaza has been witnessing tensions since March 30, which marked the start of the “Great March of Return” protests demanding the right to return for the Palestinians driven out of their homeland.
Tel Aviv responded to the peaceful demonstrations with extreme force, killing hundreds. Live ammunition is used by the Israeli troops guarding the protest sites on the Gaza border with the occupied territories.
Gaza Health Ministry in its newest report said that more than 200 Palestinian protestors have been killed and 20,000 others were injured by the Israeli forces since the pro-return marches began.
Under blockade since 2007, Gaza has been under extreme conditions as the Israeli regime blocks any food and fuel entry to the region. Tunnels have been the main lifelines for the Gazans.
Israeli air force has been launching air assaults on Gaza Strip every now and then, claiming that Hamas, a dominant group in the enclave, is making activities against the Israeli security. Hamas responds that nearly all of the attacks target civilians and civilian infrastructure in Gaza.
Tel Aviv so far waged an array of wars against Gaza, including in 2008, 2012, and 2014.
