Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said last night that every instance of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip at Israel would be met with a powerful response. The Israeli top defense official said in a speech at a ceremony for outstanding officers and non-commissioned officers in Tel Aviv that Israel would not initiate any military action, but would not tolerate any shooting, provocation, or violation of its sovereignty—either from rocket fire or provocative flotilla’s aiming at breaking Israel’s blockade on the Hamas-run Gaza Strip.
The comments by Lieberman come following yet another rocket attack against Israel’s southern communities, which emanated from the Gaza Strip. The rocket exploded in an open area in the Eshkol regional council, which is located east of the Palestinian enclave. No injuries were reported in the incident. In response to the rocket fire, the second in two days, Israel targeted several militant installations belonging to the Islamist Hamas organization, which controls the Gaza Strip, both by tank fire and by aerial strikes.
A senior Israeli defense official told TV7 that, even though Jerusalem is not interested in an escalation on its southern front, it will deal with terror organizations operating against innocent civilians. The official added that Israel maintains its position in which the Hamas organization is solely responsible for any fire emanating from the Palestinian enclave, even if other groups claim responsibility for attacks directed at Israel from the Hamas-run territory.