The IDF said late on Monday that at least five rockets were fired from Lebanon towards Israel, but all fell short of the border and crashed in Lebanese territory.
This was the second time rockets were fired from Lebanon since the fighting along Israel's southern border with Gaza began last Monday.
Bomb shelters were opened in communities along the northern border.
Meanwhile, a senior Israeli official said Monday there won't be a ceasefire on the Gaza borderas the U.S. and other countries pushed for an end to the eight-day round of fighting.
The rocket fire from Gaza continued to pound southern Israel on Monday night, as de facto Gaza rulers Hamas threatened to launch another barrage at the Tel Aviv area if the IDF continued to strike buildings in the Strip.
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Sderot kindergarten takes direct hit from Gaza rocket on Monday
(Photo: Haim Horenstein)
Four rockets hit the Gaza border city of Sderot on Monday night, causing damage but no injuries.
According to the IDF, at least 190 rockets were launched by the terror factions in Gaza at Israeli communities since the morning, 25 of which crashed within the Palestinian enclave.
The military said it had attacked a command center of the Hamas internal intelligence services in northern Gaza, claiming it was used by the group's military wing. Shortly before the strike, the IDF said it killed five militants as they were preparing to launch rockets.
That strike followed an attack on Gaza City in which a six-story building was hit.
Meanwhile, Gaza border area residents were instructed by the military to remain in bomb shelters until further notice.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held consultations with the upper echelon of the security services, the National Security Council and the IDF later in the evening and said Israel will continue to strike Hamas until it completes its objectives.
U.S. President Joe Biden told Netanyahu in a phone call on Monday that he supported a ceasefire in the fighting between Israel and Gaza factions, the White House said.
The UN General Assembly is scheduled to convene on Thursday to discuss the deteriorating situation in Gaza. Israeli officials said that due to a majority of pro-Palestinian members, they believed a condemnation of Israel would be made. Unlike in the Security Council, the U.S. has no veto power in the General Assembly and cannot prevent it from convening.
The IDF Home Front Command ordered schools as far from the Gaza border as Netanya, to remain closed at least until Thursday.
Also on Monday, the IDF assassinated a senior Islamic Jihad commander in the Gaza Strip in a drone strike. The target of the operation was Hussam Abu Harbeed, commander of the Islamic Jihad's northern brigade. He took the position in late 2019 after his predecessor, Bahaa Abu al-Atta, was also assassinated by the Israeli military.
Palestinians also said the IDF attacked a car in the western part of Gaza City and at least three people were killed in the incident. The military said the three tried to launch an attack from sea using an unmanned underwater vehicle.
The terror group responded by firing a barrage of rockets into Be'er Sheva, Ashkelon, Kiryat Malakhi and Ashdod, where a residential home sustained a direct hit. Three people were lightly wounded in the attack.
Earlier, Hamas fired rocket barrages at southern Israeli cities overnight and early morning while Israel struck a host of terror targets, including an unusually long underground attack tunnel.
Despite mounting international calls for a ceasefire, there was no sign of any imminent end to the most serious hostilities in years between Israel and the terror group that rules the densely-populated enclave, where 2 million Palestinians live.
Throughout the night, rocket alert sirens also blared in Be'er Sheva, Ashkelon Ofakim, Netivot and Israeli communities near the border. The Iron Dome intercepted the majority of the projectiles, with the rest falling in open areas. There were no reports of casualties from the attacks.
The military said that since 7pm on Sunday, 60 rockets have been fired from Gaza into Israel and at least 10 rockets fell inside the Gaza Strip.
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IDF released footage of jets striking Hamas terror tunnels
(Photo: The IDF Spokesperson's Unit)
In response, Israeli fighter jets struck nine residences belonging to high-ranking Hamas commanders. Some of the homes, it said, were used for weapons storage.
Roads, security buildings, militants' training camps and houses were also bombed in Israeli attacks that seemed to be focused on Gaza City, witnesses said. The sound of explosions echoed in many parts of the Palestinian enclave overnight.
The IDF Spokesperson's Unit said it struck 35 Hamas targets in 20 minutes, including a network of underground terror tunnels, one of which was 15km in length. "The attack is part of a wide-ranging IDF operation to significantly damage the underground network of terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip," the military said, adding that one of the tunnels was located next to a kindergarten.
On Sunday evening, an Israeli air strike in Gaza reportedly destroyed several homes. Palestinian health officials said killed 42 people, including 10 children. Israeli military said the homes were housing Hamas terrorists and served as terror infrastructure.
The latest developments appeared to have injected more urgency into Washington's calls for calm, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote on Twitter: "All parties need to deescalate tensions - the violence must end immediately", after he spoke with Egypt's foreign minister about ongoing violence in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank.
At a U.N. Security Council meeting on Sunday, the United States said it has made clear to Israel, the Palestinians and others that it is ready to offer support "should the parties seek a ceasefire".
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel's campaign in Gaza was continuing at "full force", and that deterrence had to be achieved to prevent future conflict with Hamas.
In the meantime, on U.S. network CBS' "Face the Nation" program, Netanyahu defended another Israeli air strike a day earlier that destroyed a 12-story building where the Associated Press and the Al Jazeera TV network had offices.
He said the structure also housed the militant group's intelligence office, making it a legitimate target. He said Israel had passed information about the building to U.S. authorities. A U.S. intelligence official did not respond to a request for comment.
Israel had given advance warning to occupants to leave. The Associated Press has condemned the strike and called on Israel to present evidence that Hamas was in the building.
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and remains of the building that housed international press in Gaza
(Photo: EPA, AP, Ynet)
The Gaza Health Ministry put the death toll since the hostilities flared at 197, including 58 children and 34 women. Ten people have been killed in Israel, including two children, Israeli authorities say.
The Israeli military said that Hamas, a group regarded by Israel, the United States and the European Union as a terrorist movement, and other armed factions have fired more than 3,150 rockets from Gaza over the past week.
Hamas began its rocket assault last Monday after weeks of tensions over a court case to evict several Palestinian families in East Jerusalem, and in retaliation for Israeli police clashes with Palestinians near the city's Al-Aqsa Mosque, Islam's third holiest site, during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
First published: 09:08, 05.17.21