Netanyahu says Hamas to suffer 'unexpected blows' after 2 Israelis killed from rockets
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the Israel Defense Forces Southern Command on Tuesday hours after Hamas and other terrorist groups started firing incessant barrages on Israeli communities from the Gaza Strip.
Speaking at the command headquarters, Netanyahu said, "We will increase our strikes and their intensity; Hamas will be dealt unexpected blows."
Netanyahu added that the IDF has carried out "hundreds of attacks against Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad" and noted that Israel "has assassinated commanders and hit many high-quality targets" in the first 2 days of Operation Guardian of the Wall, which began on Monday.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz, who was present at the meeting, warned Hamas as well. "For every day that you fire on Israelis, we will set you back years," he said.
Two civilians were killed in Ashkelon following a massive barrage around noon on Tuesday, Israeli first responders said following the rocket attacks from Gaza. The barrages continued all through day on Tuesday, as well as Israeli strikes on Palestinian terrorists in the Gaza Strip.
The cities of Ashkelon and Ashdod were hit with dozens of rockets from 1 p.m. onwards until roughly 2 p.m., and many communities in the Gaza area were also hit in that period.
This resulted in dozens of Israelis wounded, with most sustaining minor injuries, while others treated for shock,
The attacks on Israeli communities in the south continued almost nonstop, with sirens forcing residents to run for cover multiple times an hour. In Ashkelon and Ashdod, authorities said residents must stay in the protected space even without a siren blasting, but this was later lifted.
Since sundown Monday, 26 Palestinians — including nine children and a woman— were killed in Gaza, most by airstrikes, health officials there said, with at least 16 of the dead were terrorists, IDF officials said.At least 10 other Israelis have been wounded since Monday evening.
Gantz on Tuesday greenlighted the IDF's plans for continued airstrikes on terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip following a massive rocket barrage on Israel's south. He further signed off on calling up 5,000 reservists as the military campaign may expand in the coming days. The IDF also issued a direct appeal to Gaza residents in Arabic, telling them they must stay away from terrorists and weaponry for their own protection.
Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) fired over 250 rockets into Israel since Monday night, as the Israeli military mounted multiple strikes against Hamas positions as well as hubs operated by other terrorist groups in the coastal enclave, killing 15 terrorists and destroying over 130 targets as of Tuesday morning.
The IDF said that the targets destroyed included weapon mills, several arsenals, training facilities, two terror tunnels, a Hamas intelligence-gathering office, and the home of a senior Hamas operative. The military campaign has been given an official name: Operation Guardian of the Walls.
Hamas launched a rocket barrage on the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon in the early hours of Tuesday morning, saying it was retaliation over IDF strikes on a civilian apartment block near Gaza city.
Video showed dozens of rockets being fired at the city as the Iron Dome defense system engaged immediately. Still, at least two buildings in Ashkelon sustained a direct hit. Paramedics reported five people sustained minor injuries and one in serious condition.
Hamas said in a statement that it will "turn Ashkelon into hell" if the IDF continues to target civilian buildings in Gaza.
The Islamist terrorist group said it would "use new weapons" in any further escalation. One of Hamas' TV channels said the current flare-up includes the use of Iranian-made A-120 rockers, which have a range of 100 kilometers (62 miles).
IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. General Hidai Zilberman said in a statement that the military struck 130 Hamas and Islamic Jihad targets in Gaza, killing 15 terrorists.
"The campaign in Gaza is one that we have been preparing for," he said, adding that of the 200 projectile fired at Israel so far, 90% have been intercepted and dozens landed inside the Strip.
"There are many casualties in Gaza as a result of these misfires," he noted.
Streaks
of light are seen as Israel's Iron Dome defense system intercepts
rockets launched from the Gaza Strip at Ashkelon, May 10
Zilberman noted that the IDF plans to "continue its high-intensity strikes over the coming day. We have bolstered the deployment of Iron Dome batteries in the southern and central sectors. We are ready for any scenario, including a wide-scale escalation."
Addressing reports that Palestinian civilians have been killed in IDF strikes, Zilberman said, "We're doing everything we can to avoid such incidents, but Hamas hides amid civilians.
Sirens wailed across communities adjacent to the Israel-Gaza border almost nonstop starting at 6 p.m. Monday.
On Monday night, a home in the southern community in Shaar Hanegev Regional Council also sustained a direct hit, with only minor injuries recorded.
Gantz declared a "special security situation" in an area stretching 80 kilometers (50 miles) from the border, placing parts of central Israel on alert as well. Schools were canceled in dozens of cities. The Home Front Command has instructed the residents of southern Israel to remain near fortified areas.
Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh issued a statement saying the terrorist group has "changed the balance of power on the ground. We will prevail against any external threat from the forces of the occupation.
"The link between Gaza and Jerusalem is fixed and it will not change. When Jerusalem asked for our help, we heeded the call. We have decided to continue the struggle unless the occupation stops all expressions of aggression and terrorism in Jerusalem and the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque."A statement by the Islamic Jihad said, "Israel started the aggression against Jerusalem, and if the aggression against Jerusalem does not stop, then there is no point to any ceasefire efforts."
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the rocket attacks from Gaza against Israel should stop "immediately." He urged all sides to take steps to reduce tensions.
The United Nations Security Council held an urgent meeting Monday on the unrest in Jerusalem but issued no immediate statement, with diplomats saying the United States believed public comments would be counterproductive.
The negotiations among the 15 nations on the Security Council were over a text that could be watered down from an initial draft proposed by Norway, diplomats said.
The United States, according to one diplomat, said in the closed-door video conference that it was "working behind the scenes" to calm the situation and that it was "not sure that a statement at this point would help."
After further discussion on the possibility of a joint text calling for de-escalation of the violence, several diplomats told AFP there would be no Security Council statement Monday.
"The United States is engaging constructively to ensure any action by the Security Council is helpful in de-escalating tensions," a spokesperson for the US mission to the UN said.
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