Jaclyn Diaz, Deborah Amos – June 16, 2021
Overnight, tensions between Israel and Hamas erupted into violence, posing a potential threat to the brief period of peace reached between the two just weeks ago.
Israeli jets struck two targets early Wednesday in Gaza. In a tweet, which included a video of the attack, the Israel Defense Forces said its “fighter jets struck Hamas military compounds last night, which were used as meeting sites for Hamas terror operatives. Hamas will bear the consequences for its actions.”
The IDF said it’s “prepared for any scenario, including a resumption of hostilities, in the face of continuing terror activities from the Gaza Strip.”
It’s unclear if there were any injuries or deaths tied to the airstrikes.
The IDF launched this attack evidently in retaliation for a series of incendiary balloons launched by Hamas hours earlier. The balloons caused at least 20 fires on Israel’s southern border.
Those balloons were in response to a flag march in Jerusalem earlier Tuesday during which Israeli nationalists marched through Palestinian neighborhoods of Jerusalem waving flags, with some yelling, “Death to Arabs.”
Palestinian leaders, who saw the march as a provocation, called for a “Day of Rage.” Israeli police responded to Palestinian demonstrators by attempting to disperse them with rubber bullets.
The tit for tat throughout Tuesday upended the brief cease-fire reached May 21 after an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas.