Israeli officials said that the man killed on Thursday afternoon was Ahmed Abu Daqqa, another senior member of Islamic Jihad’s rocket launching force, who they said had been responsible for the projectiles fired at Israel over the past few days. The military wing of Islamic Jihad confirmed the death of Mr. Abu Daqqa, who was also killed in Khan Yunis.
Hamas, the larger Islamic militant group that controls Gaza, praised the strike against Rehovot. Ismail Radwan, a Hamas official, described it as retaliation for the assassination of the two Islamic Jihad commanders on Thursday and the for other Israeli “crimes.” Hamas has voiced its support for Islamic Jihad’s actions but has not actively joined in the rocket launching itself, according to Israeli military officials, a factor that could limit the scope of hostilities.
The latest round of fighting, Israel’s third confrontation with Islamic Jihad in Gaza in 10 months, began with an attack by Israel on Tuesday that killed three of the militant group’s top commanders, along with 10 civilians, four of them children, according to Palestinian officials.
A total of 26 Palestinians have been killed since the hostilities began on Tuesday, six of them children, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. The ministry said that 84 Palestinians had also been injured.
The Israeli military said that approximately a quarter of the rockets fired on Wednesday by Islamic Jihad had failed and had fallen within Palestinian territory. Israeli officials said that four of the Palestinian fatalities on Wednesday, including a 10-year-old child, had been killed by two of the misfired rockets.
Millions of Israelis in areas within range of the rocket fire have been instructed to stay close to safe rooms and shelters. Israel’s air defense systems intercepted most of the other rockets that appeared headed toward population centers, though a few slipped through and caused damage to several houses.
Reporting was contributed by Iyad Abuheweila from Gaza City, Myra Noveck and Hiba Yazbek from Jerusalem, and Gabby Sobelman from Rehovot, Israel.
Source : Nytimes
