Tel Aviv [Israel], May 3 (/TPS): The Israeli Defense Forces struck a number of Hamas sites in Gaza overnight in retaliation for Tuesday's rocket fire. According to unconfirmed Mideast media reports based on Palestinian sources, Israel and the Gaza terror groups agreed to a ceasefire.
Palestinians fired rockets at Ashkelon, Sderot and other communities adjacent to the Strip on Tuesday following the death of Sheikh Khader Adnan, a senior figure in the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group who died following an 86-day hunger strike in an Israeli prison.
Three people in Sderot suffered shrapnel wounds when a Palestinian rocket struck a construction site.
A 25-year-old Chinese labourer was seriously injured when one of the rockets struck a construction site in Sderot. Another two people were lightly wounded. The other rockets landed in open areas, causing no damage.
A military spokesperson said the IDF struck a munitions warehouse, weapons production facilities, training sites and a concrete factory used to build Hamas infrastructure. Also hit were an underground tunnel and a Hamas naval outpost.
"Hamas bears responsibility for what is happening in the Gaza Strip and it is the one who will pay the price for the security violations against the State of Israel," the IDF statement said.
After the initial air strikes, Palestinians fired rockets, triggering sirens in Sderot, Netiv HaAsara, Yad Mordechai and other Israeli communities near the Gaza border.
The 45-year-old Adnan spent many years in Israeli prisons during 10 different terms. He popularized the use of hunger strikes by Palestinian prisoners.
The Israeli Prison Service said that Adnan was found unconscious in his cell at the Nitzan Prison early Tuesday morning. CPR was performed and he was taken to the Assaf HaRofeh Hospital in Beer Yaakov where he was pronounced dead.
The IPS stressed that Adnan had refused to undergo medical tests or receive medical treatment during his hunger strike. (/TPS)
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