Israel Answers Rockets with Strikes on Gaza Strip

Israeli warplanes bombed targets in the Gaza Strip overnight between Saturday and Sunday after rockets were launched from the area. Israel’s Iron Dome defense system intercepted at least two of the rockets but a third landed outside a home in the southern Israeli town of Sderot, with several injuries reported. The launches were the first since Israel and the United Arab Emirates announced on Thursday that they were pursuing a peace treaty, although over the past several weeks Palestinians have been dispatching incendiary devices slung beneath helium-filled balloons, scores of which have started brush fires after landing in southern Israel. “The IDF views with severity any terror activity against Israel and will continue to operate as needed against attempts to harm the citizens of the State of Israel or its sovereignty,” the Israeli military said in a statement. “The terror group Hamas is responsible for all [attacks] perpetrated from and in Gaza, and it will bear the consequences of terror attacks against Israelis.” There are also reports that the Israeli Navy has begun preventing Gaza’s fishing vessels from heading to sea.