• Tweeter
  • republish

A Palestinian gunman walks near the apartment of Baha Abu al-Atta, top commander of the Islamic Jihad group, after the Israeli strike against him in Gaza on November 12, 2019. REUTERS / Mohammed Salem

The Israeli army has resumed its policy of targeted assassinations, killing the leader of Islamic Jihad during a strike in Gaza on Tuesday (November 12th). In response, rockets were fired at Israel from the Palestinian enclave, then Israel launched a new strike, killing a Palestinian and wounding several others.

It was at his home that Baha Abu al-Ata was killed, in the middle of the night, during the bombing of the apartment of this military leader of Islamic Jihad , located in the suburbs of Gaza City, as reported our correspondent in Jerusalem, Guilhem Delteil .

The operation was claimed by the Israeli army and Shin Bet, the Israeli internal security services, who accuse Baha Abu al-Ata of being responsible for " hundreds of attacks against civilians and soldiers, " and assuring that the " next attack " of the group " was imminent ".

With each episode of rocket fire, Israeli leaders say they will not tolerate attacks on their territory and their people. In recent months, in retaliation for the assaults, the Israeli army has bombed paramilitary sites and has restricted the fishing area, as well as the entry of goods into the Gaza Strip.

Israeli forces announce a resumption of targeted assassinations , signaling to Gazan leaders that they could pay with their lives for the continuation of tensions. Almost simultaneously with the first strike in Gaza, other strikes targeted the house of a political leader of Islamic Jihad, but in Damascus, Syria. Two people were killed, including the son of this leader, according to the official Syrian news agency Sana. It blamed Israel for this operation.

As Islamic Jihad responded with a barrage of rockets from Gaza, the Israeli army launched a new strike in the enclave against two members of the group posing an " imminent threat ," according to the Tsahel. The Gaza health minister said a Palestinian was killed and several others injured during the latest operation.

The operation of the night from Monday 11 to Tuesday 12 November also raises the risk of a confrontation of greater magnitude. Since its launch, the Israeli army has ordered the closure of schools in southern Israel. The measure was eventually extended to the center of the country, including the metropolitan area of ​​Tel Aviv, where rocket alarms sounded in the morning. The Israeli army says it is preparing for several days of confrontation.