Ceasefire breached: 2 Qassams fired from Gaza
Rockets land in open areas in western Negev; no injuries, damage reported; incident marks second Palestinian breach of truce since it took effect Sunday morning; Sderot resident: We were all outside because we thought the firing had ceased
The incident marks the second time rockets were fired into Israel since the ceasefire took effect at 6 a.m. Sunday.
Sderot resident Odelia Peretz told Ynet, “The siren was activated and two minutes later the siren was heard once again; it was followed by a rocket landing in the distance.
Palestinian security forces are unable to halt fire (Photo: AP)
“We were all outside because we thought the firing had ceased,” she said. “We thought the truce would hold; children were panicking, there was hysteria. The sound of the rocket landing was dim.”
A Palestinian source told Ynet that the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC), a small armed faction, claimed responsibility for the attack.
The attack is believed to be in retaliation for Israel's killing of a PRC official near Jenin on Monday. But the group's spokesperson, Abu Abir, refused to confirm the report and accused Israel of breaking the ceasefire.
Defense Minister Amir Peretz said on Monday that terror groups should understand that the ceasefire agreement reached with Israel is no timeout, warning that Israel is ready to defend itself should attacks against its citizens and military resume.
"Terror groups should understand: we are not in timeout. We remain deployed for possible responses under different scenarios. I would like to stress that in addition to the ceasefire I have no intention of resting on my laurels, but to protect our citizens," he said during the Cabinet meeting in Jerusalem.
The Islamic Jihad called Monday on Palestinian factions to reject a ceasefire with Israel that went into effect on Sunday morning.
Sheikh Mohammad Saadi, the head of the Islamic Jihad in Jenin, says the ceasefire should be abolished because it doesn't apply to the West Bank and therefore allows Israel to continue its military operations against armed groups there.
On Sunday, Israel agreed to halt its military incursions in Gaza in return for commitments by armed groups in the Gaza Strip to stop rocket attacks against Israeli communities in the western Negev.
"The group will carry out – maybe in the coming days – a suicide attack or something more inside the Israeli depth. In this case the Islamic Jihad should not be blamed," he said.
