Washington stresses the urgent need to reduce escalation in the West Bank
Israeli bombardment of Gaza in response to rockets after the Jenin clashes
Fire and smoke billow over buildings in Gaza City, following Israel's air strikes on the Strip.
A.F.B
Yesterday at dawn, Israel launched air raids on the Gaza Strip, in response to rocket fire from the Strip, the day after an Israeli operation considered the most violent in the West Bank in years, killing nine Palestinians in Jenin camp.
The Israeli army, which holds Hamas responsible for every rocket launch from the area, announced in a statement that it had carried out at least two rounds of night strikes targeting three Hamas sites.
No injuries were recorded as a result of the shelling, but heavy damage occurred in the targeted sites and in a number of nearby houses, according to a security source in Gaza.
The Islamic Jihad movement indirectly claimed responsibility for the rocket fire, while the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced in a brief statement that it had targeted the invading warplanes with surface-to-air missiles and anti-aircraft missiles.
In the middle of the night, Palestinian gunmen fired two missiles at the Israeli towns bordering the Strip, but the Israeli anti-battery system intercepted the two missiles.
During the air raids, Palestinian militants fired six missiles from separate areas towards Israeli areas near the Strip.
This escalation came after a violent day in the West Bank, during which 10 people were killed.
On Thursday, nine Palestinians were killed in the Jenin refugee camp in the West Bank, during a raid, which the Israeli army said was targeting activists from the "Jihad".
A tenth Palestinian was killed in Al-Ram, near Ramallah, by Israeli bullets, according to the Ministry of Health in Ramallah, during clashes during protests against the military operation in Jenin.
The Palestinian Authority described what happened in Jenin on Thursday as a "massacre" and announced the cessation of security coordination with Israel in the West Bank.
The US State Department expressed its regret for this decision, saying that "it is very important for the parties to maintain or even deepen their security coordination."
Yesterday, US State Department spokesman Ned Price expressed the United States' deep concern about the spiral of violence in the West Bank.
"We are deeply saddened by the fall and injury of civilians, and we are also deeply concerned about the spiral of violence in the West Bank," he added.
The spokesperson stressed the urgent need for the parties to reduce tensions, avoid further loss of civilian life, and work together to improve the security situation in the West Bank.
On Monday and Tuesday, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is scheduled to visit Israel and the West Bank in an effort to reduce escalation.
The Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, condemned what happened in Jenin.
After Friday prayers yesterday, thousands of Palestinians participated in mass marches in the Strip, in solidarity with Jenin.
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