Explosions hit two police checkpoints in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday, killing three officers and wounding several other Palestinians, the Hamas-run interior ministry said, declaring a state of emergency after the blasts, Reuters reports.
Interior ministry spokesman, Eyad Al-Bozom, said security forces were making progress in their pursuit of those behind the explosions, but he did not disclose further details.
#Breaking| New explosion near a security checkpoint in Sheikh Ijleen area in western #Gaza. #Palestine pic.twitter.com/bb18CzZUVN
— Quds News Network (@QudsNen) August 27, 2019
A spokesman for the Israeli military said he knew of no involvement by Israel in the back-to-back incidents in Gaza city at a time of simmering cross-border confrontations with Hamas.
The first blast destroyed a motorcycle as it passed a police checkpoint, witnesses said. Two police officers were killed and a third Palestinian wounded. It was not immediately clear if the riders were among the casualties.
Second explosion in Gaza. Also the target is a police checkpoint.
— Muhammad Smiry ?? (@MuhammadSmiry) August 27, 2019
The second explosion, less than an hour later, killed one officer and wounded several people at a police checkpoint elsewhere in the city, the interior ministry said. The ministry declared a state of emergency throughout Gaza, putting security forces on alert.
(Middle East Monitor, PC, Social Media)
