Palestinian Islamic Jihad launched dozens of rockets at southern and central Israel on Wednesday from the Gaza Strip. Air-raid sirens sent millions of Israelis running for cover, including in Tel Aviv, and the Iron Dome air defense system began intercepting projectiles in mid-air.
The barrage came a day and a half after Israeli Air Force strikes which killed three senior PIJ commanders and destroyed ten of its bases and weapons storage facilities in Gaza. Accord ing to Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the delayed response was significant. First, it took PIJ some time to overcome the shock caused by Israel’s surprise attack on Tuesday, said Hagari. The terrorist group then understood that Israel had gone into defensive mode following the strikes, flooding Gaza’s skies with aircraft, both manned and unmanned, to detect and eliminate any retaliation attempt, he added. In response, PIJ dispatched an anti-tank-missile squad to the border fence near Khan Younis in southern Gaza to carry out an attack against Israeli soldiers or civilians, said Hagari. The squad’s vehicle was detected by IDF intelligence and struck from the air, he added.
