News / Palestine

Israel launches airstrikes against Hamas targets near Rafah crossing in Gaza

Tuesday, 18 August 2020 2:04 AM [ Last Update: Tuesday, 18 August 2020 2:32 AM ]

Smoke and flames rise after war planes belonging to the Israeli army carried out airstrikes over the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah, on August 18, 2020. (Photo by AFP)

The Israeli regime’s aircraft have carried out airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, hitting Hamas targets and infrastructure.

The strikes have landed near the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt in the pre-dawn hours of Tuesday morning, according to Palestinian media reports.

An Israeli spokesperson said in a statement that the regime’s aircraft, including its jet fighters, attacked an “underground infrastructure” belonging to the Palestinian resistance group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military claims the attack was carried out in response to incendiary balloons sent from the Gaza Strip into the occupied territories throughout the day.

Earlier, the Israeli military’s tanks had attacked a number of military observation posts of Hamas.

There were no immediate reports of casualties.

Egypt mediators enter Gaza following Israel’s intensified military strikes

Egyptian mediators enter the Gaza Strip in an effort to reduce tensions following Israel’s intensified attacks.

On Monday, Egyptian mediators arrived in the Gaza Strip in an effort to broker a ceasefire agreement, but departed without appearing to have secured a resolution.

Mediators typically announce any agreements before leaving the territory. But after a day of meetings with officials from Hamas, the three Egyptian general intelligence envoys left for the occupied territories, according to Adel Abdelrahman, a Gaza-based advisor to the Egyptian mediators. They made no declaration before departing.

The Israeli regime every so often launches strikes against positions in the blockaded enclave, accusing resistance groups there of launching attacks.

Flying fiery kites and balloons has become a new mode of protest by Gazans since March 2018, when the Tel Aviv regime began a crackdown against anti-occupation demonstrations near the fence separating Gaza from the Israeli-occupied territories, killing and injuring many people.

Hamas vowed to step up its resistance against the Israeli military after two children were injured during nighttime Israeli strikes on Gaza on Friday.

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