The IDF attacked Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip overnight Sunday, in response to last night’s rocket from Gaza that fell in an open area near Nahal Oz. The IDF stated that a “central site” used for the production of most of Hamas’s rockets, as well as a terror tunnel in the southern Gaza Strip and an observation post from which an anti-aircraft missile was fired at Air Force planes, were attacked.
Following the attack, there were red alerts in Moshav Bnei Netzer and Shlomit in the Eshkol regional council.
The last rocket launch from Gaza was on November 3, after the assassination of senior Jihad leader Farouk Salameh in Jenin.
בתגובה לירי הרקטה מהרצועה: חיל האוויר תקף אתר מרכזי לייצור רקטות של חמאס | תיעוד@ItayBlumental
(צילום: דובר צה”ל) pic.twitter.com/jRL5epOgNt— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) December 4, 2022
Hamas reportedly pressured the Islamic Jihad not to retaliate for the killing of two senior Jihad leaders in Jenin, but appears to have little influence on its sister terror group. The IDF’s policy is that since Hamas is in charge of the Gaza Strip, Hamas is punished for those violations of the status quo.
Hamas did release a photo of what appears to be a Strela-2 man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) that was launched at the Israeli jets. It missed.
Qatar, which pays most of the salaries in Gaza, has been putting a lot of pressure on Hamas since the start of the World Cup demanding that peace be maintained until the end of the games, Kan 11 News reported Friday night. The Qatari envoy to Gaza, Muhammad Al-Amadi, was sent to Gaza at the beginning of the tournament and returned to his country a few days ago. The Qatari message was conveyed to Hamas, but the Qataris are also trying to talk to the Islamic Jihad to reduce tensions with Israel.
תקיפות הלילה ברחבי הרצועה לרבות מתקנים של החמאס והג’יהאד האסלאמי. הכל היה ריק מתוך כוננות ספיגה. החמאס הודיע רשמית שאנשיו שיגרו טילים נגד מטוסים (סוג של הצהרה על יכולת). נכון לשעה זו אין דיווחים ברצועה על נפגעים, זה יכול להיות אלמנט מסייע לסיום האירוע. pic.twitter.com/vYYof9dcS5
— Jack khoury.جاك خوري (@KhJacki) December 4, 2022
An Egyptian source close to the Qatar-Hamas talks told Haaretz that the squad responsible for the rocket was a rogue unit of the Islamic Jihad which doesn’t obey the united operations command of the terrorist factions.
