CNN
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According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Israel carried out airstrikes in Gaza early Thursday morning after intercepting a rocket attack from a coastal enclave.
In a post on Twitter, the IDF said Israeli fighter jets targeted a chemical production site and a weapons manufacturing facility owned by Hamas, the Palestinian militant group that runs Gaza.
“Israeli Defense Forces hold Hamas accountable for all terrorist activities emanating from Gaza and will face consequences for security violations against Israel,” the IDF wrote.
On Wednesday, the IDF reported that one rocket fired from Gaza was intercepted by an IDF air defense array.
On Thursday, it released two videos of the airstrike shot in black and white. It showed a huge column of black smoke in the air and debris falling to the ground.
It is not clear if there were any casualties.
The official Palestinian News Agency reported that F-16 fighter jets fired at least five missiles at a “site” in the central Gaza Strip, setting it on fire and damaging nearby homes. Two missiles also hit central farmland.
The strike will take place after a period of bloodshed on both sides. Last Thursday, Israeli forces killed nine Palestinians and injured several others in the West Bank city of Jenin. It was the deadliest day in almost two years for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. This was followed by a shooting near a synagogue in Jerusalem on Friday night in what Israel considers one of the worst terrorist attacks in years.
It also follows US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s visit to Israel and the West Bank this week, which some hoped would help defuse escalating tensions.
The Biden administration has tried to be careful with its language and avoid publicly criticizing Israel’s new government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
On Wednesday, Brinken reiterated the administration’s goal of a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians, saying the US “will continue to oppose anything that strays from that goal.”
Last year was the deadliest for both Palestinians and Israelis in the West Bank in nearly two decades, CNN analysis of official statistics from both sides showed.
