Itongadol.- Hamas has managed to fire rockets from the Gaza Strip further than it did so far on Sunday afternoon, when it fired a rocket that hit near Haifa – some 150km from the Gaza Strip. Earlier, a 16-year-old boy sustained serious injuries and a 50-year-old man was lightly injured by a rocket blast in Ashkelon.
Near 8pm, the rocket alert siren was sounded in a lot of places in southern and central Israel, among others in Modi\’in, Ashdod and the Jerusalem area.
Around 6:18pm, three rockets exploded in Eshkol, causing damage to a chicken coop. Another rocket exploded in Eshkol earlier, at around 6pm. The Iron Dome intercepted a rocket over Ashdod ar around 6:15pm.
At around 5:50pm, a rocket exploded in an open area in Sha\’ar HaNegev. At around 5:13pm, two rockets hit the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council.
Shortly after 4:30pm, rocket alert sirens were sounded all across the greater Tel Aviv area, in the Sharon plains and in the Western Galilee. Iron Dome intercepted two rockets that were fired at the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. One rocket fell area near Haifa. So far, no injuries or damages were reported.
Hamas, that claimed responsibility for the rocket fire, said it launched a Fajr-5 rocket at Rishon LeZion, three M-75 rockets at Tel Aviv and one R-160 rocket.
The rocket alert siren was sounded in the following places, among others: Nahariya, Tel Aviv, Azor, Holon, Bat Yam, Palmachim, Rishon LeZion, Avihayil, Beit Yitzhak, Bitan Aharon, Givat Shapira, Havatzelet HaSharon, Netanya, Hadera, Elyakhin, Emek Hefer, Bat Hefer, Yad Hana, Kfar Yona, Givat Haim, Zemer, Lehavot Haviva, Magal, Netzer, Gan Shmuel, Sha\’ar Menashe, Even Yehuda, Udim, Beit Yehoshua, Bnei Zion, Batzra, Ga\’ash, Hof Hasharon Regional Council, Qalansawe, Sha\’ar Ephraim, Shefayim, Herzliya, Kfar Shmaryahu, Ramat Hasharon, Bnei Brak, Givat Shmuel, Givatayim, Ramat Gan, Ra\’anana, Kfar Saba and Petah Tikva.
Two rockets fell in the Hof Ashkelon Regional Council, one inside one of the communities and another in a greenhouse. Light damages were reported, but no one was hurt.
A 41-year-old woman was lightly wounded in Hadera when she fell while running to take shelter. A 24-year-old woman in Natanya was also hurt in the same manner. Five people in Natanya were also being treated for shock.
Two rockets fell near Ashkelon at around 4pm, causing fires. No one was hurt.
At 2:25pm, a rocket hit an inhabited area in Ashkelon. No one was hurt and no damage was caused.
On Sunday morning, Code Red sirens wailed across southern Israel, as residents in Ashkelon, Ashdod, and Be\’er Sheva rushed to shelters. Two rockets exploded in open areas near Be\’er Sheva. The Iron Dome missile battery intercepted one rocket over Ashkelon.
Some one million Israelis woke up to the sound of alarms after 6 am, as Code Red sirens blared in cities across central and southern Israel: Rehovot, Rishon LeZion, Modi\’in, Ashdod, Lod, Ashkelon, Ramle, Ben Gurion Airport, and other smaller communities.
The shockwaves from the explosions were heard as far as the Tel Aviv metropolitan area. Four rockets were intercepted during the salvo – three over Lod and one in the skies of Ashdod. The IDF reported that the Israeli Air Force attacked the launchers used for the early morning rocket fire.
The air raid sirens wailed overnight Saturday in the Eshkol, Sha\’ar HaNegev, and Sdot HaNegev Regional Councils from midnight until 5 am – a total of 10 rockets landed in open spaces in the Gaza border region. Two of the rockets exploded inside Eshkol, causing light damage to a house and a public structure. No one was injured in the rocket salvo.
According to figures released Saturday night, since the beginning of Operation Protective Edge, 605 rockets fell inside Israel (84 on Saturday) and 143 rockets were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system (at least 6 on Saturday).