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IDF downplays Jenin rocket attacks as internet stunt

Israeli security officials say pair of rocket attacks from PA city in northern Samaria were carried out by lone wolf.

By David Rosenberg, World Israel News

Israeli security officials downplayed a pair of rocket attacks from the Palestinian Authority-administered city of Jenin, dismissing the launches as a stunt intended to draw attention on social media outlets like TikTok.

On Monday, two makeshift rockets launched from Jenin towards Israeli territory, marking the first time in 18 years that terrorists in Judea and Samaria fired rockets as part of an attack on the Jewish state.

Both rockets fell far short of their targets, travelling some 80 meters (265 feet) and landing in PA-controlled territory.

“The rockets did not pose a threat to communities in the area,” the Israeli military said, adding that the projectiles “were makeshift rockets, with very limited capabilities.”

IDF officials said Tuesday that the two rockets were launched by a lone wolf terrorist, identified as a resident of a small town outside of Jenin. The man does not have any ties to any known terrorist organization, officials said, according to The Jerusalem Post, despite claims by Hamas that it was responsible for the launches.

Army officials cited by Israel National News and the Post said the launches appeared to be little more than a publicity stunt aimed at producing footage of rocket fire for social media outlets.

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“The video on Tiktok succeeds in sowing fear, but according to sources in the army, there is no real threat in the field yet; the serious threat is the shooting squads. The IDF is following the attempt to develop this field [of launching rockets at Israel from Judea and Samaria] and deals with it all the time,” a source cited by INN said.

Last month, the Shin Bet internal security agency discovered a rocket in an Arab neighborhood in eastern Jerusalem. One suspect, Abd al-Hakim Buatana, a resident of the Palestinian Authority-controlled town of Ajul in Samaria, was arrested.