Ceasefire threatens to break apart as rockets continue to hit Israel

An Islamic Jihad official says the ceasefire is only a means to regroup for further attack.

By World Israel News Staff

The ceasefire between Israel and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) was threatened on Friday when four rockets were launched from Gaza into southern Israel.

According to several reports, Israel responded by striking a PIJ brigade headquarters and a depot used to manufacture rockets. Palestinian media reported that two people were injured during Israel’s counter-attack.

“The IDF views with great severity the violation of the ceasefire and the firing of rockets at Israel. It is at high alert and will continue to act, as necessary, against attempts to harm Israeli citizens,” the IDF said in a statement.

Already on Thursday, PIJ broke the ceasefire agreement by firing six rockets throughout the day into southern Israel. Three out of the six rockets were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome defense system.

A ceasefire had been agreed upon on Thursday at 5:30 a.m. It was was reached with the help of Egyptian mediators after negotiations with Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader Ziad al-Nakhala, who flew from Damascus to Cairo on Wednesday evening.

Before the truce was announced, Islamic Jihad struck a defiant tone, issuing a statement that it did not seek an end to the fighting, which began after Israel assassinated Baha Abu Al Ata, one of the terror group’s key figures, in a targeted killing on Tuesday morning.

Samir Zaqout, a senior PIJ official, told the Palestinian Al-Watan Voice news outlet that the ceasefire agreement was not meant to be permanent, but rather just a means to provide PIJ an opportunity to regroup for further attacks.

“This was just another one of the rounds, and not the end,” he said. “It does not mean that Palestinian Islamic Jihad will stop its jihad. During the period of calm, we will continue our preparations for inflicting pain on the enemy.”