Two rockets explode in open area near settlement south of Jerusalem
Two rockets explode in open area near settlement south of Jerusalem | The Times of Israel.
Hamas fires missiles towards the capital, no injuries or damage; IDF says over 70 rockets fired from Gaza Strip hit Israel on Friday; major protests against Operation Pillar of Defense in Jerusalem, Cairo, and Tehran; IDF prepares fifth Iron Dome battery for deployment
Hamas continues to fire into Israel. The IDF continues to attack terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip. The IDF spokesperson reports that over 500 strikes have been carried out by the military since Operation Pillar of Defense commenced on Wednesday afternoon. Hamas and terrorist organizations in Gaza have launched more than 70 rockets on Friday alone. The Times of Israel is liveblogging developments. Press “Refresh” for latest updates and click here for our previous live blog detailing events as they unfolded on earlier on Friday. (Click here to receive our free daily newsletter, compiling the day’s key stories.)
Defense Minister Ehud Barak approves call-up of additional reservists out of a quota of 30,000 that was approved Thursday.
The IDF Spokesperson announced on Thursday evening that 30,000 reservists were being called up as Israel prepared for a possible extended ground incursion into Gaza as part of Operation Pillar of Defense.
Air raid sirens are going off in Ashdod, Gan Yavne, and Gedera as Hamas continues to fire rockets at southern Israeli cities and towns.
Ynet reports that two rockets were shot down over Ashdod and the nearby town of Beer Tuvia.
A direct hit has been confirmed on a house near Kiryat Malachi, in southern Israel, Channel 2 reports.
Rescue forces are on their way to the scene, though no casualties have been reported as of now.
On Thursday, three people were killed in Kiryat Malachi when a residential building in the city was hit by a rocket.
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat urges calm among Jerusalem residents following the air raid siren that sounded across the city two hours ago.
“I would like to reassure the residents of Jerusalem, continue routine life in the city and abide by Home Front Command advisories. The Municipality has drilled all the scenarios and is prepared for them. Public shelters are ready in case we need to open them.”
The two missiles fired from the Gaza Strip by Hamas landed in open areas south of Jerusalem, causing no damage or injuries.
Hamas releases a video purporting to show a Fajr 5 missile being shot toward the Israeli parliament building in Jerusalem, the Knesset.
Air raid sirens heard in Gedera, Ashkelon and Ashdod.
Hamas confirms the group fired a long-range rocket at Jerusalem, located roughly 75 kilometers away from the Gaza border and previously thought to be beyond the range of Gaza rocket squads.
“We are sending a short and simple message: There is no security for any Zionist on any single inch of Palestine and we plan more surprises,” AP quotes Abu Obeida, spokesman for the Hamas militant wing, as saying.
Hamas officials say the rocket was a homemade “M-75″ rocket, a weapon that has never been fired before.
Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat calls on the capital’s residents to keep calm, adding that they can go about their business as usual as long as they pay attention to updates and instructions from the Home Front Command.
“The municipality has drilled and is prepared to face every scenario,” he says, adding that the city’s public bomb shelters are “ready in case we are required to open them.”
Air raid sirens are sounding across southern Israel. Three rockets have exploded in open areas in the Eshkol border region causing no damage or injuries. One rocket was intercepted by the Iron Dome missile system over the town of Beer Tuvia. Another rocket has exploded outside Beersheba, no injuries reported.
The IDF Spokesperson denies the accuracy of Hamas’s claims that it shot down an IAF aircraft operating over the Gaza Strip.
The M-75 missiles that Hamas claims to have fired at Jerusalem traveled an estimated 70 or more kilometers (45 miles) before exploding south of the capital.
There is no known missile type known as the M-75.
Video footage taken by a resident of Hebron claimed to show the missile strikes south of Jerusalem. People standing beside the cameraman cheer when the blasts are seen.
Hamas’s Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades also claims to have downed an IAF aircraft operating over the Gaza Strip. There has been no confirmation of this report. Hamas claims the IAF is bombing the area around the crash site to prevent Hamas operatives from gathering wreckage.
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman speaks at length over the phone with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton on Friday, according to Channel 2 News. He reportedly thanks Clinton for her support and stresses that Hamas must unconditionally stop firing on Israel.
Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman meets with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, on Monday July 16 (photo credit: Miriam Alster/Flash90)
Israel Police confirms rocket hit open space outisde Jerusalem.
Rockets fired from Gaza are landing throughout southern Israel. Air raid sirens are going off in towns surrounding the Gaza Strip and Beersheba. A rocket has hit and damaged factory in the Sha’ar Hanegev border region, another landed in the Eshkol region and damaged a house. Two explosions are being reported near the coastal city of Ashkelon.
Air raid siren heard in Beersheba.
IDF Spokesperson confirms that two rockets launched from the Gaza Strip by Hamas landed approximately 14 kilometers (8 miles) south of downtown Jerusalem, near the settlement bloc of Gush Etzion.
The IDF Spokesperson confirms a rocket hit outside Jerusalem.
Hamas’s armed wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, says it’s launched “two M75 homemade missiles towards Jerusalem”.
Al Qassam Brigades launch two M75 homemade missiles towards occupied Jerusalem#gaza #GuzaUnderattack #ShaleStones #Hamas #Resistance
Air raid siren in Sha’ar Hanegev region. No damage or casualties reported.
Business as usual in Tel Aviv: shoppers hit the city’s Carmel Market in droves, despite the air raid siren which sounded in the city earlier on Friday. One shop owner tells Channel 2 that when the siren sounded, panicked shoppers started running in all directions. “We invited them into our shop for shelter,” she says.
Channel 10 reports that two rockets landed near the West Bank settlement of Gush Etzion south of Jerusalem. Emergency services en route.
Rockets reportedly landed in open areas.
The sound of gunshots and police sirens can be heard in downtown Jerusalem shortly after air raid sirens went off in capital and surrounding towns.
Channel 2 reports a rocket hit an open space north of Jerusalem, no one was hurt.
Air raid sirens blare across Jerusalem and the surrounding area shortly after sundown as a rocket fired by Hamas, described as an “upgraded Qassam” was launched at the capital.
This is the first time rocket warnings have gone off in Jerusalem.
Residents in south Jerusalem say they heard the siren, waited a couple of minutes and then heard two booms — one a few seconds after the other.
Israeli TV says Hamas is saying it fired M-75 missiles on Jerusalem.
Earlier the armed wing of Hamas was quoted saying that “surprises” were in store shortly, but it’s not clear whether the incident was related.
Ynet reports that the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, warns that in a short while there will be “surprises.”
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