Air Force Bombs Gaza Tunnel, Weapons Factory

The Israeli Air Force bombed Gaza terror targets shortly after midnight Tuesday after Gaza terrorists attacked Israel with mortars and rockets. One smuggling tunnel and weapons plant were destroyed shortly in an F-16 raid.

 No one was seriously injured, and there was no confirmation of Gaza claims that that two women and six men were lightly wounded.

Secondary explosions at two of the three targets indicated that the sites contained explosives for rockets or for bombs that Hamas and allied terrorists plant on the patrol route at the Gaza security/separation fence. Several nearby buildings sustained damage.

The terror tunnel was intended to be used by terrorists to infiltrate into Israel and to carry out attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers, according to IDF spokesmen.

Tuesday’s attacks on the western Negev continued to offer evidence that Hamas either is not able to or does not want to halt aerial and ground strikes from competing terror groups.

Following a severe escalation in the offensive against Israeli civilians and soldiers, Hamas announced last month it would impose a ceasefire, fearing a repeat of the Operation Cast Lead campaign, which drastically reduced missile strikes on southern Israel two years ago.

Since the end of the counterterrorist campaign, Israel has adopted a tit-for-tat policy of retaliation following rocket and mortar attacks. Five projectiles exploded at a kibbutz and in the Sderot area Tuesday, causing mage to a parked car but no injuries.

Gaza-based terrorists have attacked the area with more than 40 mortars, Kassam rockets and Grad missiles since the beginning of this year.

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