After Rocket Fire, Israel Strikes Hamas Targets

Amid rising tensions along Israel’s borders, the IDF Sunday night struck Hamas assets in the Gaza Strip in response to rockets fired into southern Israel earlier in the day. According to the IDF, two projectiles were intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system, while a third landed near a highway and caused a fire. The attack came one day after a Qatari envoy left the coastal enclave, where he reportedly distributed tens of millions of dollars to Hamas in order to ease “the suffering [of the] people in Gaza in light of the difficult humanitarian conditions.” Israel has over the past months allowed Doha to transfer an estimated $200 million to the Hamas-ruled territory in accordance with a loose cease-fire agreed to in May. Nevertheless, violence has continued to erupt. In response to the latest flare-up, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Monday ordered the military to reduce by half the amount fuel transported into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom border crossing. Meanwhile, Hamas continued to distance itself from numerous attacks emanating from Gaza in the past two weeks.