The Israeli army attacked by air and tank fire several sites in the besieged Gaza Strip on Monday.
The tensions came after Hamas called for unity among Palestinians and resistance against Israeli plans to annex parts of the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli army said that a rocket had been fired from the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip “into Israel”, the first such act in more than a month.
Israeli Warplanes Strike the Besieged Gaza Strip https://t.co/MsqmxHoTTR
— Data Relay (@relay_data) June 16, 2020
Earlier on Monday, senior Hamas official Salah al-Bardawil told a news conference “we call for the annexation project to be confronted with resistance in all forms”.
“We call on our people to transform this hardship into an opportunity to get the Palestinian project back on track,” Bardawil said.
Bardawil also called for a meeting between Hamas and the Palestine Liberation Organization, which includes various other Palestinian groups.
#US Ambassador #Friedman and #Israeli Leaders Fail to Reach #Annexation Agreement https://t.co/oKQMKKi9aR via @PalestineChron pic.twitter.com/4kEmutHh9L
— @palestinechron (@PalestineChron) June 15, 2020
On June 1, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu renewed his pledge to annex part of the occupied Palestinian West Bank in July.
Palestinians have expressed outrage, appealing to the international community to block the Israeli step, which, if implemented, would be considered the final nail in the two-state solution’s coffin.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas announced on May 19 that the PA is canceling all agreements with Israel and the US, as a direct response to Israel’s annexation plans.
(Palestine Chronicle, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, Social Media)
