Israeli warplanes retaliate for Gaza rocket attacks

Feb 11, 2012, 23:02 GMT

Gaza - Two Palestinians were moderately injured late Saturday in four Israeli airstrikes on targets belonging to militant groups in eastern and southern Gaza Strip, medics and witnesses said.

Witnesses said Israeli mlitary jets flew over the coastal salient ruled by Islamic Hamas movement and fired on targets in eastern Gaza City and the southern towns of Rafah and Khan Younis.

Security officials said the airstrikes were in retaliation for homemade rockets attacks fired from the Gaza Strip at southern Israel early Saturday. No one claimed responsibility for the attacks, which according to Israel radio caused no damage or injuries.

The escalation of violence in Gaza violates a fragile ceasefire reached between Israel and Gaza militants. The ceasefire had been repeatedly mediated by Egypt and renewed between the two sides.

The Gaza injuries occurred in the Israeli strike on militants southeast of Gaza City, where paramedics said that at least two Palestinians were injured and were taken to Shiffa Hospital in the city.

The other Israel strikes hit an empty area east of Gaza city, where an underground tunnel used as a weapons cache was destroyed, and destroyed an empty building in Rafah and a tunnel east of Khan Younis. No injuries were reported from those strikes, witnesses said.