Islamic Jihad Rejects Egyptian-mediated Truce as Exchange of Fire With Israel Continues

The Health Ministry of the Hamas government in the Gaza Strip reported 31 people killed and 265 injured in the Strip since the start of fighting between Israel and the Islamic Jihad group. According to the Israeli military, at least nine of the deaths were from misfired Palestinian rockets. Hamas has so far held its own rocket fire.

Islamic Jihad forces in the Gaza Strip directed heavy rocket fire toward Israeli border communities, as well as the cities of Ashkelon, Netivot, Beersheba, Ashdod, and Rishon Lezion Sunday afternoon amid Palestinian reports that the armed Palestinian group has turned down all cease-fire offers. Residents of Israeli communities along the border were instructed to enter shelters and remain inside until further notice.

Israeli sources confirm Egyptian-mediated negotiations are underway for a full cease-fire. Reuters reports that Israel has agreed to a cease-fire starting at 9 pm Sunday night; Islamic Jihad has not yet returned an answer to the Egyptian mediators.

Earlier reports said Egypt had offered the sides a humanitarian cease-fire to allow fuel into Gaza, whose sole power station closed Saturday over a fuel shortage. Islamic Jihad turned down the offer and Israel believes a humanitarian cease-fire is unlikely to be achieved.

A home in the Eshkol Regional Council area took a direct hit Sunday morning when the area came under a heavy barrage of rocket fire. The family was in its bomb shelter and there were no casualties.

Rockets were fired from Gaza on areas near Jerusalem for the first time since the start of hostilities between Israel and Islamic Jihad in Gaza. Code Red alerts sounded in communities on the western outskirts of Jerusalem and rockets reportedly were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system. There were no reports of damage or injuries.

On Saturday, rockets were fired on the major population center of Tel Aviv.

Nearly 600 rockets were fired from Gaza between Friday and Sunday morning, most in the south of the country, according to the Israeli military. The Iron Dome has had a 97% success rate in intercepting the projectiles.

The Gaza operation, dubbed Breaking Dawn, was launched after threats from Islamic Jihad to avenge the arrest last week in Jenin of Bassam al-Saadi, the head of Islamic Jihad in the West Bank.

For the first time since becoming opposition leader more than a year ago, Israeli Opposition Leader Binyamin Netanyahu met with Prime Minister Yair Lapid and his military secretary Maj. Gen. Avi Gil to receive a security briefing. Netanyahu had previously boycotted the meetings, which are required by law, saying he did not recognize the legitimacy of the coalition government formed under then-Prime Minister Naftali Bennett. The coalition has since dissolved and the caretaker government is being headed by Lapid, with parliamentary elections to be held November 1.

Netanyahu said in a statement after the meeting that he received a detailed briefing on the operation.  “We’re in the midst of fighting. I of course give full backing to the government, to the Israel Defense Forces and the security forces. I also commend the residents of the south for their resilience and urge them to continue to heed the instructions from the Homefront Command. This truly saves lives,” he said.

Meanwhile, the United Nations Security Council is scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the cross-border hostilities. The meeting was requested by the United Arab Emirates, which is a member of the Security Council, as well as along with China, France, Ireland, and Norway. Israel and the UAE normalized relations two years ago as part of the Abraham Accords.

Also over the weekend, the United States affirmed Israel’s right to protect its citizens from rockets fired from Gaza.