Israel strikes Hamas, Islamic Jihad positions in Gaza

By Nour Abu Eisha and Hani al-Shaer

GAZA CITY, Palestine

Israeli warplanes and artillery struck a number of Hamas observation posts in the northern Gaza Strip on Thursday morning.

According to Anadolu Agency correspondents based in the area, Israeli artillery batteries deployed east of the strip’s town of Jabalia targeted several Hamas-linked observation posts situated near the Gaza-Israel border.

The observation posts were also targeted from the air by Israeli warplanes and unmanned aerial drones, correspondents said.

The attacks caused limited damage, they added, although no injuries were reported.

According to Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee, the strikes came in response to a series of blasts that occurred along the Gaza-Israel border earlier Thursday.

“A short while ago, several improvised explosive devices were detonated along the [border] security fence in the northern Gaza Strip without causing injuries,” Adraee tweeted.

The army had responded, he added, by shelling positions associated with Gaza-based resistance factions Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

He did not provide further details.

Hamas, which remains in de facto control of the blockaded Gaza Strip, has yet to comment on the developments.

In 2014, Israel waged a devastating 51-day military onslaught on the Gaza Strip in which more than 2,300 Palestinians were killed -- the vast majority of them civilians -- and tens of thousands injured.

According to Israeli figures, 73 Israelis -- mostly soldiers -- were killed in the conflict.