Hamas fires rockets at Israeli cities

JERUSALEM >> Palestinian militant group Hamas said it fired a barrage of rockets at cities in Israel’s south on Sunday in response to Israeli “massacres” of civilians in Gaza.

Israel’s military said about ten projectiles were fired, but most successfully intercepted. Israel’s Channel 12 reported a direct hit in the southern city of Ashkelon.

Israeli emergency services said they were treating one person for shrapnel injuries and teams were en route to locations of fallen rockets. Smashed car windows and debris lay strewn on a city street, videos disseminated by Israeli emergency services showed.

The first phase of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas went into force on January 19 after 15 months of war and involved a halt to fighting, the release of some of the Israeli hostages held by Hamas, and the freeing of some Palestinian prisoners.

However, Israel said on March 19 that its forces resumed ground operations in the central and southern Gaza Strip. Both parties blamed one another for a stalemate in the ceasefire talks.

More than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli offensive in Gaza, Palestinian officials say. Israel began its offensive after thousands of Hamas-led gunmen attacked communities in southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and abducting 251 as hostages, according to Israeli tallies.