Rocket fired from Gaza hits southern Israel amid heightened tension

[Photo : IANS]


A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip hit an open area landed in southern Israel, according to the Israeli military.

There were no immediate reports of injuries and claim of responsibility for the attack, Xinhua news agency reported, citing Israeli media reports.

The rocket attack comes at a time of heightened tensions between Israelis and Palestinians, with over 80 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces and 14 Israelis died in Palestinian militants’ attacks since the beginning of this year.

Earlier this week, four Palestinians, including a teenager, were killed in an Israeli military raid in the West Bank city of Jenin, according to Palestinian health officials. After the raid, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad vowed revenge.

Tensions are expected to escalate in the coming days when the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and the Jewish weeklong holiday of Passover overlap in April.