Palestinian terrorists launched their deepest-ever rocket attack into Israel.
A rocket believed to be a Soviet-style “Grad” slammed into northern Ashkelon on Thursday, causing no damage or casualties. The distance from the Gaza boundary – 11 miles – prompted Israeli officials to say it was the longest-range rocket ever fired from Gaza.
There were two claims of responsibility – one jointly by Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees, and one by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.
Israel responded to the attack by sending warplanes to bomb two buildings in Gaza belonging to Islamic Jihad and a third belonging to the ruling Hamas. No one was hurt.
Ashkelon Mayor Ronny Mahatzri said Israel’s armed forces should invade Gaza to crush the rocket crews.
“We knew that they had this ability,” he told Israel Radio. “But for us, for the state, as the prime minister said a few months ago, a rocket in Ashkelon is a red line, and so now we’ve crossed this line. I now know of no other solution except for massive military action to eliminate terror.”
