Israel hits Hamas in Gaza after rocket fire at Israeli city

The Israeli military says it has carried out airstrikes in Gaza is response to rocket fire toward southern Israel. (Photo by DVIDSHUB/Flickr, CC BY 2.0)

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says it has carried out airstrikes in Gaza is response to rocket fire toward southern Israel.

The military says it struck a Hamas military compound in southern Gaza early on Wednesday. No casualties were reported.

The strike followed a rocket fired late Tuesday toward Israel’s southern coastal city of Ashkelon. It was intercepted by the anti-missile Iron Dome defence system.

Israel typically responds to each Gaza attack and holds Hamas responsible, regardless of which group fired. The area has been largely calm since the 2015 Israel-Hamas war.

Palestinian militants have fired several rockets at Israel in recent days, sparking an uptick in Israeli retaliation. Two Hamas militants and two demonstrators were killed over the weekend.

The exchanges followed President Donald Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.