During an Israeli air strike on August 5, 2022, smoke and fire rise above Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza strip. Palestinian Islamic Jihad fired dozens of rockets into Israel on Friday night, all of which were intercepted or fell in open areas, causing no injuries, the Israeli military said.
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The Israel Defense Forces said the PIJ launched some 80 rockets in southern Israel. Nearly half of them fell short in Gaza and 46 crossed the border, 33 of which 33 were intercepted by the Iron Dome defense system, and the rest fell in open areas, causing no injuries.
The PIJ, an Islamist organization, claimed the firing of over 100 rockets at southern and central Israeli towns, and said the move was just the beginning of its response to the Israeli army's killing of its senior commander Tayseer al-Jabari in the afternoon.
According to the Palestinian Health Ministry, eyewitnesses, and the PIJ, at least 10 people, including a 5 year-old girl, were killed in Israeli airstrikes on Friday afternoon.
Israel carried out renewed Israeli airstrikes throughout the night, with the Israeli military saying the operation targeted weapons production and storage facilities as well as shooting positions belonging to the Islamic Jihad. Israel isn't interested in a wider conflict in Gaza but will not shy away from one, according to Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Friday evening after holding security consultations in Tel Aviv.
The heightened tension came after Israeli forces arrested a senior official of the PIJ in the West Bank city of Jenin on Monday. The PIJ vowed to take revenge, prompting the Israeli military to raise its alert along the border with Gaza.