Palestinian Islamic Jihad targets Jerusalem for first time amid ongoing conflict, fires barrage of rockets
May 13, 2023
Jerusalem [Israel], May 13 : Amid an escalation of violence in the region and the death of at least 33 Palestinians in Gaza and one Israeli, the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) fired rockets at Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, and Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank on Friday, CNN reported.
It is for the first time since the onset of the conflict that the Islamic Jihad has targeted Jerusalem for the first time, firing a barrage of rockets at Israel.
In the midst of the ongoing cross-border shooting that has resulted in significant bloodshed in the area, particularly along the Gaza Strip, explosions could be heard in Jerusalem.
On Saturday, the Israeli Army said it launched strikes on the Gaza Strip overnight, hitting what it said were two command centres belonging to senior Islamic Jihad commanders, CNN reported.
An Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip killed a senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad member on Friday, the sixth since the latest round of hostilities began earlier this week, Times of Israel reported.
The strike near Gaza City that killed Iyad al-Hassani and another man the military said was his assistant dealt another blow to the terror group and further dampened hopes for a ceasefire.
In a joint statement, the Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet security agency said al-Hassani was a top official in the group's military council, in charge of its operations department. In recent days, he had also replaced the head of Islamic Jihad in northern Gaza, Khalil Bahtini, who was killed in an Israeli strike on Tuesday morning, Times of Israel reported.
According to the Hamas-run health ministry, another five people were wounded in the airstrike targeting the top floor of an apartment building.
