Dhe Israeli army launched a new military operation in the Gaza Strip on Friday afternoon. Army spokesman Richard Hecht told journalists that the airstrikes were a “preventive attack” against the “Movement of Islamic Jihad in Palestine” (PIJ). The Islamist organization is the second strongest military force in the coastal strip after Hamas. Tensions between her and Israel had escalated in recent days after Israeli security forces arrested a senior PIJ commander in the West Bank.
Hecht announced that the “coordinated air strikes” killed, among others, Taisir al-Jabari, the PIJ commander for the north of the Gaza Strip. The army released video footage showing multiple rocket hits in a high-rise building. Al-Jabari was responsible for several attacks on Israel in May 2021, according to the army. About ten other PIJ members were also killed by rocket hits. They would have presented an “imminent threat”. Shortly before the start of the airstrikes, Israel’s Defense Minister Benny Gantz visited the army’s Southern Command in Beersheba. There he said, addressing Hamas and the PIJ: “Your time is limited. This threat will be eliminated, one way or another.”
Six jihadist positions attacked
The Israeli army said six PIJ positions had been attacked. According to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza, at least eight people died. A five-year-old girl was among them. More than 40 people were injured. Army spokesman Hecht said he had “no knowledge” of hits on civilians or residential buildings.
The military operation, dubbed Operation Dawn by the Israeli army, threatens another military escalation between Israel and the densely populated Palestinian coastal strip nearly 15 months after the May 2021 Gaza war. Army spokesman Hecht said on Friday that the Israeli army had “now taken the initiative” and was “not done yet.” Units primarily from northern Israel would be relocated to the south. In the evening, the army also announced the call-up of a large number of reservists.
The PIJ said in a statement that Israel had “started a war against our people.” “We all have a duty to defend ourselves and our people,” it said. Hamas announced it would respond to the “escalation.” A spokesman for the Islamists ruling the Gaza Strip said Israel bore full responsibility for the attack.
Population calls for more offensive Israeli action
For days there had been heightened tensions in the Israeli areas around the Gaza Strip. Public life there had largely come to a standstill since Tuesday after Israeli security forces arrested the PIJ leader in the West Bank earlier this week. Another member was killed when a firefight broke out during the operation in the Jenin refugee camp. The PIJ then threatened retaliation. Fearing attacks, the army blocked roads around the Gaza Strip, suspended rail traffic and imposed curfews. At the same time, the military presence was increased, and drones were increasingly flying over the Gaza Strip. In parallel, there were indirect negotiations with the PIJ on Egypt.
Residents and politicians in the Israeli areas bordering the Gaza Strip have increasingly expressed their dissatisfaction with the unfamiliar and ongoing restrictions and are calling for a more offensive action by the government. Prime Minister Jair Lapid said on Friday morning – even before the airstrikes began – that the security and quality of life of residents around the Palestinian territory are the government’s “top priority” and that it is working to return them to their normal lives as soon as possible could resume life.
Also affected by the restrictions were thousands of Gaza residents who could no longer use the border crossing to work in Israel. In the area largely cordoned off by Egypt and Israel, the energy supply is now also threatening to fail: lack of fuel could mean that the only power plant in the Gaza Strip can no longer work. A fuel delivery on several trucks did not reach the Gaza Strip before the start of the attacks, according to the Israeli army.
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