Over 5,000 Rockets Fired As Israeli Military, Hamas Conflict Escalates

The Israel Defense Force (IDF) announced Saturday that in response to the “barrage of rockets” fired at Israel by Hamas (mercenaries) from Gaza in Palestine, it is currently striking its targets in Gaza.

Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu also disclosed that the country was “at war” on Saturday.

The IDF said about 2,200 rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip into Israel on Saturday morning – a development Hamas quickly claimed responsibility for.

Hamas military commander, Muhammad Al-Deif, tagged the operation “Al-Aqsa Storm,” saying it “targeted the enemy positions, airports and military positions with 5,000 rockets”.

Hamas maintained it was a retaliation for the “desecration of the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem and the ongoing siege of Gaza.”

Already, the early morning attack from Hamas in Israel has killed about 22 people while injuring 250 according to Israel’s Magen David Adom (MDA) emergency rescue.

Meanwhile, the IDF tweeted afterwards that “it is initiating a large-scale operation to defend Israeli civilians against the combined attack launched against Israel by Hamad this morning.”

The crisis between Israel and Hamas is age-long due to the dispute over who owns the territory of Jerusalem.