Israel targets Hamas sites after Gaza rocket attack

Palestinian militants in Gaza have fired 18 rockets or mortar rounds at Israel in violence that erupted after US President Donald Trump’s controversial recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.

Israeli aircraft attacked Hamas bases in Gaza early Tuesday in response to a rocket from the Palestinian enclave targeting southern Israel hours before, concurring sources said.

A Palestinian demonstrator reacts during clashes with Israeli troops at a protest against US President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, near the border with Israel in the southern Gaza Strip on December 29, 2017. (Reuters Photo)

The aircraft targeted a “military compound belonging to the terrorist organisation Hamas,” a statement from the army read.

Palestinian security sources said the strikes were in Khan Younes in the south and Deir al-Balah in central Gaza, causing damage but no casualties.

On Monday night, a rocket hit a town in southern Israel, causing however no damage or casualties.

Palestinian militants in Gaza have fired 18 rockets or mortar rounds at Israel in violence that erupted after US President Donald Trump’s controversial December 6 recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, six of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome defence system.

The projectiles are often fired by fringe Islamist groups, but Israel holds Gaza’s militant rulers Hamas responsible for any attacks from the territory and retaliates by targeting Hamas positions.

“The IDF holds Hamas solely accountable for events in the Gaza Strip,” the Tuesday army statement read.