Hamas denies responsibility for Sunday night’s rocket attack on Sderot

Hamas spokesman says the terror group wasn’t behind Sunday night’s rocket attack on Sderot.

By World Israel News Staff

Hamas spokesman Hassam Qassem said the terror organization that rules the Gaza Strip didn’t fire the three rockets on the Israeli town of Sderot on Sunday night. He blamed the Israel media for “pointing the finger at the Gaza Strip in order to justify the IDF attacks on the Strip.”

Israel, however, has repeated the refrain that it holds Hamas responsible for any attack launched against Israel from the area under its control.

In keeping with this principle, the Israel Defense Forces struck targets in the northern Gaza Strip in response to the terrorist rocket fire.

Major General Kamil Abu Rukon, Coordinator of the Government Activities in the Territories, (COGAT), said he had spoken with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who decided to cut the amount of fuel being delivered to the Gaza power station by half, effective Monday morning.

The three rockets fired from the Gaza Strip didn’t cause direct damage. Two were intercepted by Israel’s Iron Dome. In a dramatic video, a piece of an Iron Dome interceptor struck a building in Sderot.

A third rocket fell by the side of Route 34, a north-south highway that passes Sderot.

“Live Sderot,” a concert taking place in the city, was cancelled. Thousands ran to shelter as the warning sirens sounded. Israel media reports 16 were treated for shock. One woman suffered light injuries after falling while running to safety.

After a month without rocket attacks, the situation has heated up along the Gaza-Israel border. Terrorists launched six rockets into Israel overnight Wednesday and into Thursday morning last week.

Israel said it struck a number of military targets at a Hamas naval facility in the northern Gaza Strip in response.

Netanyahu said he was planning “a broad campaign” against Hamas during his visit to Ukraine at the time. “And it will be different from we’ve seen in the past. I can’t detail the preparations, but we are developing a broad campaign, and it could be that it will happen.”