Israeli tanks shot down Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip during the day in what the Israeli army said was a response to sustained waves of incendiary balloons being sent over the security gate to nearby Israeli cities and settlements.
The ongoing violence – which lasted for nine consecutive nights – came despite attempts by Egyptian security officials to end the flare-up, which saw two weeks of rocket and balloon attacks from Gaza and nightly Israeli raids.
Local media reported on Thursday that Qatar is also mediating between Israel and Hamas – the group that rules the Gaza Strip – to restore calm and that the next 48 hours would be crucial.
Gaza security officials said the Israeli attacks hit Hamas observatories near al-Maghazi and al-Bureij refugee camps in the center of the strip, and the city of Khan Younis, further south.
There were no casualties, they said.
An Israeli military statement said “fuel balloons were launched from the Gaza Strip into Israel”.
“In response … tanks were aimed at military posts belonging to the Hamas terrorist organization in the Gaza Strip,” it said.
Power outages
As part of punitive measures against the incoming balloons, Israel has banned fishing off the coast of Gaza and closed the crossing point of Karam Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom), abolishing supplies of fuel to the territory’s only power plant.
Electricity was still in short supply before closing, with consumers having access to electricity for only about eight hours a day.
That will now be cut to just four hours a day with energy supplied from the Israeli grid.
The Gaza Strip has a population of two million, more than half of whom live in poverty, according to the World Bank. Palestinian territory has been under a devastating Israeli blockade since 2007.
Israel and Hamas have fought three wars since 2008.
On Wednesday, the president of the Gaza Neonatal Network (GNN) warned that frequent power outages are threatening the lives of more than 100 newborn babies who are currently in intensive care incubators in hospitals in Gaza.
Nabil al-Baraqoun said the 135 neonatal incubators were all powered by electricity, noticed power cuts and the use of alternative energy sources causing damage to medical devices such as incubators, resuscitation equipment and ventilators, which could cause complications for the beekeepers – and even deaths.
Qatar pleads guilty to sending $ 15 million to Gaza as part of an informal agreement between Israel and Hamas.
Under that deal, Israel allowed subsidies to pass through its territory in exchange for an end to the weekly “March of Return” protests held by Palestinians east of the fence that separates Israel and Gaza.
Most of the funds were to be used to pay the salaries of Hamas officials, but about $ 5 million a month was for poor Palestinians in Gaza.
SOURCE:
Al Jazeera and news agencies
.
