Rocket fire from the Gaza Strip resumed early on Saturday after an overnight lull as Operation Shield and Arrow enters its fourth day of fighting.
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Despite a cease-fire that was to come into effect Saturday at midnight, IDF struck Palestinian Islamic Jihad positions and rocket-launch pads overnight, hours before sirens were heard in Ashkelon and border area communities.
Among the targets was a safe house used as the operations headquarters of Mohammed Abu al-Ata, a senior figure in the terrorist organization's rocket unit. It is the same unit that his brother Baha Abu al-Ata commanded before his assassination by Israel during the opening of Operation Black Belt in 2019.
According to the IDF, Abu al-Ata's brother has been known to evacuate his headquarters during emergencies and take refuge in al-Shifa Hospital among the civilian population, while continuing to operate and direct terror attacks against Israel.
The Air Force also targeted another operational headquarters of Khaled Azem, a senior operative in the rocket force of the Islamic Jihad's Gaza Brigade. In addition, seven rocket and mortar launchers were targeted throughout the Strip, including sites from which rockets have been fired toward Gaza border communities on Friday.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu instructed the heads of the defense establishment to carry on with targeted assassinations of Islamic Jihad commanders and precision strikes on the terrorist group’s assets.
Egyptian mediators on Friday presented Israel with a new cease-fire proposal for fighting in Gaza. According to reports in the Saudi-based Al Arabiya television channel, the Egyptian proposal includes a temporary humanitarian lull in the fighting to allow border crossings to open for vital supplies to reach the Strip.
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Residents of northern Gaza overlook the aftermath of an Israeli strike on a PIJ commander's home on Friday
(Photo: AP)
A spokesperson for the PIJ declined to present the Islamist Faction's response until Israel agrees to halt the targeted killing of its commanders.
An Israeli official told Ynet on Friday that Israel aimed to demonstrate to Gaza terrorist factions its commitment to protecting all parts of its territory with the same force and convey a message to Hezbollah, Hamas, and other terrorist organizations about the intelligence capabilities of the Shin Bet and the IDF.
First published: 07:16, 05.13.23