GAZA, Aug 22 (NNN-WAFA) – The Islamic Hamas movement threatened Israel yesterday, to get engaged into a battle, if Israel continues striking Hamas militant posts, facilities, and sites.
Fawzi Barhoum, Hamas spokesman, said in a press statement that, “the armed resistance (Hamas and other militant factions) won’t hesitate to join a battle with Israel, if it keeps striking on the Gaza Strip.”
Hamas and Israel’s tension has been mounting during the past 10 days, in which Israel carried out ground and air attacks on Hamas military posts and facilities all over Gaza.
Israeli army officials said, the daily attacks on Hamas posts in Gaza are response to launching arson balloons and firing makeshift projectiles from the besieged coastal enclave into Israel.
“The response of the Palestinian armed resistance against the occupation’s (Israel) escalation, and tightening its siege imposed on the Gaza Strip was direct,” Bahroum said, referring to the firing of around 12 projectiles into Israel on Thursday.
“The Israeli occupation, which continues its aggression on Gaza, tightens its siege, disturbs the populations’ lives and shells the resistance posts, should bear the results and pay the price,” Barhoum added.
Israeli media reported that overnight and on Friday morning, militants launched around 12 projectiles from Gaza into southern Israel, causing damage to a house and wounding four Israelis in Sderot city.
In response, Israeli warplanes carried out a series of airstrikes that targeted Hamas militants’ posts and facilities in Gaza, with no injuries reported, according to Hamas security sources.
Israel also banned the shipment of construction materials and fuel, and forbade around 3,000 Palestinians from fishing off the Gaza coast.
Two days ago, a high-ranking Egyptian security intelligence delegation failed to convince Hamas and Israel into restoring calm in Gaza, after Israel rejected Hamas’ demands to improve the enclave’s living conditions.
An Israeli army spokesman, earlier announced that, Israeli Army Chief of Staff, Aviv Kochavi, approved a plan of getting on alert in southern Israel for all possible scenarios.
Meanwhile, the joint chamber of military operations for Palestinian factions’ armed wings said, they “will not let the enemy (Israel) keep the illegal and unfair siege imposed on our people.”
In a press statement, the militants said, it is the right of the Palestinian people “to use all possible means of resistance to express their rejection to the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip for 14 years.”– NNN-WAFA
