The death of a hunger-striking Palestinian militant in an Israeli prison touched off a new eruption of fighting along the volatile border between southern Israel and the Gaza Strip.
(Bloomberg) — The death of a hunger-striking Palestinian militant in an Israeli prison touched off a new eruption of fighting along the volatile border between southern Israel and the Gaza Strip.
Palestinian militants launched rockets and mortar fire at southern Israel on Tuesday morning following the death of Khadar Adnan, a member of the Islamic Jihad group who died on the 86th day of his hunger strike.
They unleashed a second, bigger volley in the afternoon after Israel retaliated with tank fire at the blockaded enclave. One person was wounded, and residents of southern Israel were instructed to stay near shelters as the violence escalated.
Armed factions in Gaza, including the militia affiliated with the territory’s Hamas rulers, claimed responsibility for the afternoon barrage.
“This comes as an initial response to this heinous crime,” they said in a statement. “We warn the enemy that its persistence in aggression and its commission of any crime or folly will not go unanswered.”
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held a situation assessment with military chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, and afterward warned that “anyone who attempts to harm the citizens of Israel will regret it.”
Upon completing the assessment, Gallant said that “anyone who attempts to harm the citizens of Israel will be sorry.”
The fighting raises the potential of wider conflict just as Israel’s parliament reconvenes after a monthlong recess to address domestic issues including passage of a national budget and the internal turmoil that’s gripped the country over the government’s plan to weaken the courts.
In other violence, an armed Palestinian opened fire on Israeli cars near a Jewish settlement in the West Bank, damaging two vehicles and slightly injuring an Israeli civilian, the army said early Tuesday.
Adnan was the target of “a deliberate assassination,” Palestinian National Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh said in a statement. The Israeli prison administration was guilty of “neglecting him medically and keeping him in his cell despite the seriousness of his condition,” he said.
The Israel Prison Service said Adnan refused to receive medical treatment and undergo tests, and was found unconscious in his cell. He was transferred to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to a statement.
–With assistance from Saud Abu Ramadan.
(Updates with new clashes, statements from Palestinian militants, Israeli defense minister.)
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