Mortar moderately wounds rescue service worker in Negev

Man in his 20s sustains moderate head wounds in mortar barrage on Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council

Neri Brenner|Published: 11.18.12 , 12:26

A rescue service worker in his 20s sustained moderate head wounds when a mortar fired from Gaza landed in the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council at around noon Sunday.

The man was treated at the scene and then evacuated to the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba.

A total of nine mortars were fired at the area almost simultaneously.

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Earlier Sunday, two rockets launched from Gaza landed in Ashkelon. One of the projectiles hit a four-storey building. Two people sustained light shrapnel wounds in the attack, and five others suffered from anxiety. The rocket penetrated the building through its roof.

פגיעה נוספת באשקלון, היום (צילום: עידו ארז)

Rocket damage in Ashkelon, Sunday (Photo: Ido Erez)

The second rocket landed near a different residential building and damaged parked cars. Two additional projectiles that were launched toward the city were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system.

Later, at around 10:30 am, the Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted a rocket fired from Gaza toward the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. There were no immediate reports of injury, but a vehicle in the Holon area was damaged by shrapnel.

Another rocket was fired at Ashkelon a short while later and severely damaged a house.

A siren was activated in Tel Aviv and the vicinity at 10:31 am, shortly before the rocket was intercepted. Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it had fired an M75-type rocket, which the terror group says is manufactured in Gaza.

The explosion was heard throughout the entire Tel Aviv area. "I was at home in the 'old north' (area of Tel Aviv) when the siren sounded," a resident told Ynet. "The siren was followed by an explosion that shook the windows."