JERUSALEM (JTA) — An Israel Air Force aircraft struck what the Israeli military said were terrorists planning to launch rockets at southern Israel from the Gaza Strip.
One man was killed and three injured in the attack, Palestinian media reported following the airstrike on Monday evening. The dead man was identified as Mus’ab Za’aneen, 21, a member of the Al-Quds Brigade, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad.
“The mission was carried out in order to eliminate an imminent attack targeting civilian communities of southern Israel,” according to a statement from the Israel Defense Forces spokesman’s office.
“IDF intelligence, operational capability and determination to eliminate a real-time threat keeps Israelis safe in their homes,” IDF spokesman Peter Lerner said.
The airstrike came shortly after Code Red alerts signaling an incoming rocket were sounded near Ashkelon in southern Israel.
On Friday evening, Israeli troops fired on a Palestinian woman who approached the border fence and did not respond to orders to halt, despite being in a military security zone. The woman, according to her family, was mentally disturbed.
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