Israel strikes Gaza after rocket fired from coastal enclave into Israel

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) targeted a weapons manufacturing site in the Gaza Strip and several Hamas military posts after a rocket was fired from the coastal enclave into Israel, according to Israeli media reports.

Early Saturday morning, sirens sounded in the southern city of Ashkelon and the Iron Dome intercepted a rocket fired from Gaza. It was the first rocket fired since late April. Neither Hamas nor Palestinian Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the attack.

No one was injured and no damage was reported.

Terrorists just fired a rocket from Gaza toward southern Israel.

The rocket was intercepted mid-air by the IDF Aerial Defense Array.

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 18, 2022

The events came shortly after an escalation in the West Bank between Israeli soldiers and Palestinians on Friday, in which three Palestinians and several others in Jenin were killed. The IDF was searching for weapons and said it was investigating whether or not the incident sparked the rocket attack.

Also on Friday, an Israeli observation balloon crashed and fell in the Gaza Strip. The military said the balloon was not shot down by Palestinians and the incident is currently under investigation. They did confirm there was no concern about a significant information leak.

The last large-scale eruption of violence between Israel and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip was more than a year ago, in May 2021. Over the course of less than two weeks, Hamas fired more than 4,300 rockets and mortars at Israel.