Israeli air strikes on Gaza
Israeli tanks shelled a position of Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, according to the Israeli military.
In a statement, the army said the tank fire came after suspects crossed a security fence between Gaza and Israel.
Local residents said the shelling targeted an observation tower in the eastern Gaza Strip.
No casualties were reported.
The Palestinian Presidency on Friday sounded the alarm over Israel’s current military escalation in Gaza.The Palestinian Presidency called for the international community to intervene immediately to prevent the deterioration of the situation in the Gaza Strip, according to a statement carried by Palestine’s official WAFA news agency.The statement said Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has approached a number of regional and international parties in an effort to contain the current escalation. Nickolay Mladenov, the UN envoy for the Middle East peace process, also called for an immediate end to the escalation in the Gaza Strip.Video: Gazan kids' video interrupted by air strike?“Everyone in Gaza needs to step back from the brink. Not next week. Not tomorrow. Right NOW!” he tweeted.“Those who want to provoke Palestinians and Israelis into another war must not succeed,” he added.Earlier today, three Palestinians were martyred when Israeli tanks and aircraft targeted sites belonging to Ezzedine al-Qassam, the armed wing of the Hamas movement.Another Palestinian was martyred during the return marches on Gaza borders.These losses were followed by a major Israeli assault on Gaza, reportedly with tanks, warplanes, and artillery fire.Hamas: Israel, Palestinian movements reach ceasefireFour Palestinians in Gaza Strip killed by Israeli forces
Palestine urges intervention to end escalation in Gaza
Saturday’s shelling came shortly after Hamas announced a cease-fire deal between Palestinian resistance factions and Israel to ease tension in the Palestinian territory.
The Israeli army also announced that Israeli communities adjacent to the Gaza border could return to normal civilian routine as calm was restored along Gaza border.
The cease-fire deal came after four Palestinians were martyred and an Israeli soldier killed in an escalation on Friday.
Since March, more than 140 Palestinians have been martyred – and thousands more injured – in Palestinian protests against the decades-long Israeli occupation and an 11-year blockade, which has gutted the Gaza economy and deprived its roughly 2 million inhabitants of many basic commodities.
Two Palestinians were killed on Friday by Israeli forces near the Gaza-Israel buffer zone, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.“Two Palestinians were martyred by Israeli occupation forces east of the city of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip,” ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said in a statement.
Two Palestinians in Gaza Strip killed by Israeli forces
Hamas announced early Saturday that a ceasefire has been reached between Palestinian resistance movements and Israel."A ceasefire has been reached between the [Israeli] occupation and the Palestinian factions under the mediation of Egypt and international sides," Hamas spokesperson Fawzi Barhoum said in a written statement.The statement did not provide further details.Four Palestinians in Gaza Strip killed by Israeli forcesThree Palestinians were martyred late Friday when Israeli tanks and aircraft targeted sites belonging to Ezzedine al-Qassam, the armed wing of the Hamas movement.Another Palestinian was martyred during the ongoing Great March of Return protests on the Gaza border.The losses were followed by a major Israeli assault on Gaza, reportedly with tanks, warplanes and artillery fire.The Israeli military also said that one of its soldiers was killed Friday after coming under fire from gunmen on the Gaza side of the border.
Hamas: Israel, Palestinian movements reach ceasefire
Four Palestinians were killed Friday by Israeli forces in two separate incidents near the Gaza-Israel buffer zone, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.The first incident took place in the Khan Younis and Rafah areas in the southern Gaza Strip, where Israeli tanks and aircraft targeted sites belonging to Ezzedine al-Qassam, the armed wing of Hamas movement, killing three of its members.“Three Palestinians were martyred by Israeli occupation forces, including two in the northern Gaza Strip and a third in the southern city of Rafah,” ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qidra said in a statement.Israel’s Lieberman threatens ‘painful’ Gaza offensiveHe did not provide the names or ages of the slain individuals.However, the al-Qassam Brigades identified the killed men as Shaaban Abu Khater, 26, Mohamed Abu Farhana, 31, and Mahmoud Qeshta, 23.The second incident took place at the return marches, where a young man was killed and 120 others were wounded by Israeli army gunfire and tear gas.Palestinian experts slam Israel’s ‘Jewish State’ lawGaza’s incendiary kite-flyers defy Israeli threatsThe Palestinian Health Ministry identified the martyr as Mohamed Sherif Badwan, 27, who was shot in the chest by the Israeli army, east of Gaza city.For almost four months, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip have been holding almost daily demonstrations near the Gaza-Israel buffer zone.Since the demonstrations began on March 30, more than 140 Palestinian protesters have been martyred -- and thousands more injured -- by Israeli army gunfire.Protesters demand the “right of return” to their homes and villages in historical Palestine, from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.They also demand an end to Israel’s 11-year blockade of the Gaza Strip, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its roughly 2 million inhabitants of many basic commodities.
Four Palestinians in Gaza Strip killed by Israeli forces