Army artillery battery. Operations halted
Photo: Reuters
Qassam (Archive)
Photo: Tzvika Blumshtein
19 Qassams land in Israel throughout day
Heavy rocket barrage hits southern Israel throughout weekend, as Palestinians respond to death of seven civilians in Gaza Friday
The rocket barrage on Israel continued Saturday, with 19 Qassams landing in the country's territory in the last 24 hours.
The last two rockets landed at around 9:45 p.m. near the kibbutzim of Alumim and Be'eri in the western Negev. The rockets were fired from the northern Strip, and fortunately caused no damage or injuries. A third rocket apparently fell inside Palestinian territory.
During the past day the Palestinians launched dozens of Qassams at Israel, as well as some mortar shells. The IDF has not been responding to the strikes, following a decision to suspend all attacks until the probe into the Gaza beach blast that killed seven Palestinian civilians is completed.
"We felt really exposed, like ducks in a shooting range, with no one to protect us and without even having helicopters around like usual," a resident of the region told Ynet.
"For a moment we felt abandoned. We truly hope the IDF responds to this weekend's shooting, which was unusual in comparison to other Saturdays."
Hamas' armed wing vowed on Friday to renew attacks against Israel hours after IDF artillery shells killed seven civilians.
"The Israeli massacres represent a direct opening battle and that means the earthquake in the Zionist cities will resume and the herds of occupiers have no choice but to prepare the coffins or the departing luggage," the group said in a statement.
Hanan Greenberg contributed to the report
