Death toll in Israel from Hamas rocket fire rises to 4

TEL AVIV: The toll in the Hamas rocket fire from the Gaza Strip into Israel climbed to four, The Times of Israel reported. The daily reported earlier that after a barrage of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, Hamas fighters infiltrated Israel.

The mayor of Kuseife, Abd al-Aziz Nassara, confirmed the toll, adding that several more have been wounded as the rockets from Gaza rained on the town. Kuseife, a Bedouin town in southern Israel, is located around 65 km from the Gaza Strip. According to reports, a woman was killed earlier in the rocket attack and their multiple injuries as well.

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Following the attack, red alert warning sirens were activated in Tel Aviv, located around 70 km from the Gaza Strip, as well as, Sde Boker, Arad and Dimona in the south. Residents living across these areas heard the massive explosions, according to The Times of Israel.

Meanwhile, Opposition leader Yair Lapid received a security briefing from the Israeli Prime Minister’s military secretary, Avi Gil, following the attack. “Israel is in an emergency” and Lapid would back a “harsh military response” to Hamas’s coordinated attack, a statement from the Opposition’s leader’s office said.

Apart from the woman, who died of her wounds, the injured included a 52-year-old man from Gederot, who was moderately injured, and a 20-year-old man from Yavne, who also sustained minor injuries. Both victims were transferred to Kaplan Hospital, according to the Jerusalem Post.

The Israel Defense Forces, meanwhile, declared a state of readiness for war following the attack. “There has been widespread rocket fire into Israeli territory from Gaza, and terrorists have infiltrated Israeli territory through various entry points. Residents in the south and centre of the country are required to be in close proximity to protected areas, and those in the Gaza periphery should remain within a secure space,” the IDF added in its statement.

The IDF said it was carrying out retaliatory airstrikes in the Gaza Strip. The strikes come nearly two hours after Hamas launched a surprise attack, the Israeli daily reported. The Israel Defense Forces has closed the roads near the Gaza Strip border as Hamas’s rocket fires in Israel, according to The Times of Israel. The closed roads include, Route 4 from the Zikim junction to Netiv Ha’asara; Route 34 from the Yad Mordechai junction to Nir Am; and Route 232 from Mefalsim to Sa’ad and Nir Yitzhak to Kerem Shalom.

The army said it has also closed all routes used by farmers in the area. Additionally, the Zikim beach on the Gaza border is also closed off, The Times of Israel reported. Further, according to the IDF, the trains will not run between Ashkelon and Sderot. (ANI)