Sirens in Ashkelon and Ashdod, Reports of Direct Hits

After a few hours of relative quiet, fire on the south was renewed, with red color sirens going off in Gaza Perimeter settlements as well as Ashkelon, Ashdod, and settlements in the Lachish area. There was also a report of a hostile aircraft penetrating Nir Oz, with residents called on to stay in their homes.

According to initial reports, a number of direct hits were registered against buildings in Ashkelon. Magen David Adom reported that two people were lightly injured, a 60 year old man hit by shrapnel and a 40 year old woman evacuated to Barzilai hospital.

The rocket salvo comes after the IDF struck many targets in the Gaza Strip over the last 24 hours. Documentation published today showed the extent of the damage to the neighborhoods of Shijaiyeh and al-Furqan, which serve as terror bases for Hamas for launching multiple terror attacks against Israel. According to the IDF spokesperson, over 450 targets throughout the neighbourhood were hit.

During the night, dozens of fighter planes struck over 200 targets throughout the neighborhood of al-Furqan, and over 70 Hamas targets in the area of Daraj Tuffah, alongside a military structure used by Palestinian Islamic Jihad. At the same time, dozens of fighter planes struck over 80 targets throughout Beit Hanoun.

Among other targets, the IDF struck at two bank branches serving Hamas' efforts at funding terror in the strip, an underground terror tunnel inside the Strip, and two operational command posts serving the terror organization in directing terror attacks towards Israel. The IDF also struck at two Hamas compounds in the Strip which served for training terror activists and producing and storing weapons. The headquarters of Hamas' northern brigade was destroyed at one of the compounds.