The armed wing of the Palestinian militant group Hamas announced on Sunday that it had launched a “large rocket barrage” at Tel Aviv, Israel’s commercial hub. The Israeli military reported intercepting several of these rockets.
The Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades claimed on Telegram that the attack on Tel Aviv was in retaliation for the “Zionist (Israeli) massacres against civilians.”
According to the Israeli army, at least eight rockets were fired from Gaza’s far-southern city of Rafah, where Israeli forces have been engaging Palestinian militants. The military confirmed that “a number of the projectiles were intercepted” by Israeli air defenses.
An AFP correspondent in Gaza observed rockets being launched from Rafah, while in Tel Aviv, rocket sirens sounded for the first time in months. An AFP correspondent in Tel Aviv reported hearing at least three explosions.
This escalation follows the outbreak of war in Gaza after Hamas’s attack on southern Israel on October 7, which led to the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, based on an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Hamas militants also took 252 hostages, with 121 still held in Gaza, including 37 who the Israeli army says are dead.
In response, Israel’s offensive has resulted in the deaths of at least 35,984 people in Gaza, primarily civilians, according to the health ministry in the Hamas-controlled territory.
