The IDF attacked two Hamas sites for the production and storage of weapons in the central Gaza Strip, in retaliation for the firing of 10 rockets overnight at the Gaza envelope settlements in Israel. The rocket launches continue, and alerts were sounded in the settlement of Mavoim in the western Negev, in the town of Sderot, and other settlements.
צה”ל תקף ברצועת עזה בתגובה לשיגור רקטות לעבר ישראל pic.twitter.com/GH33IL1i7u
— assaf gibor (@assafgibor) April 5, 2023
Israel’s security apparatus wants to avoid escalation in the Gaza Strip on the eve of Passover, which would inevitably entail escalations on the Temple Mount and Judea and Samaria. The IDF has already made it clear to Hamas through mediators that if there are no more launches from Gaza, Israel would not attack again.
The spokesman for the military wing of Hamas, Abu Obeidah, said from the Gaza Strip: “The patience of the resistance forces in Gaza is running out, we will not leave the worshipers at Al-Aqsa Mosque alone.”
Omg … omg omg … Al Aqsa Mosque #Israel pic.twitter.com/pfhuay7Xr8
— Abier (@abierkhatib) April 4, 2023
Al Quds reported that 12 Arabs were injured––three from sponge bullets––and 350 were arrested, at dawn on Wednesday, as a result of the Israeli police raid of Al Aqsa Mosque. Police used gas and stun grenades against the barricaded Arabs who threw at them every kind of projectile and confronted them physically.
18 rockets were fired starting at 3 AM, one of which hit a factory in the Sderot industrial area. There were no casualties. The Iron Dome system intercepted four rockets and the other five fell in open areas. The security apparatus estimates that the Islamic Jihad is responsible for the shooting.
Magen David Adom reported that a 30-year-old man fell and was injured when he ran to a protected area in Sderot. He was evacuated to Barzilai Hospital in Ashkelon in minor condition. A female victim of an anxiety attack was treated on the spot and did not require evacuation.
Meanwhile, there is an escalation in Judea and Samaria: a Givati fighter was wounded by terrorists shooting near Beit Omer and was taken to hospital in stable condition. In other areas in Judea and Samaria, there were violent disturbances.
Despite all of the above, the IDF declared a return to normalcy and approved several Passover events in the Gaza envelope settlements.
