Israel launches air strikes over Gaza in response to rocket attack

Israel launched air strikes on Beit Hanoun, a city on the northeast edge of the Gaza Strip, the army and police have said. It came after militants in the Gaza strip fired a rocket at the Israeli border town of Sderot on Sunday (21 August).

The rocket landed in a residential area in Sderot. However, it did not cause any injuries or damage.

According to a Reuters report, a water tower in Beit Hanoun was damaged when Israel retaliated. Israel launched multiple air raids on Sunday evening which hit at least 30 different points in Gaza strip.

A Palestinian health ministry spokesperson said that a 17-year-old Palestinian youth suffered a minor shrapnel injury in his foot while militants belonging to smaller Islamic jihadist groups were lightly hurt.

Israeli military said that its planes had shelled targets in northern Gaza strip. It also added that 14 rockets had hit Israel since the beginning of the year.

Israeli army spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Peter Lerner said in a statement that the military "remains committed to the stability of the region and operated in order to bring quiet to the people of southern Israel."

Meanwhile, Hamas spokesperson Sami Abu Zuhri said: "We hold [Israel] responsible for the escalation in the Gaza Strip and we stress that its aggression will not succeed in breaking the will of our people and dictate terms to the resistance."

Television footage showed that a music festival, which was attended by hundreds of Israelis, got disrupted after the attack by the militants.No group has claimed responsibility for the rockets fired into the Israeli town of Sderot.

The Gaza strip is controlled by Hamas and they have held ceasefire with Israel since the 2014 war. However, jihadists from smaller groups have continued to launch rocket attacks into Israel.

During the 2014 war, at least 2,100 Palestinians, most of whom were civilians, were killed. Six Israeli civilians and 67 soldiers died in rocket attacks by Hamas and other extremist groups.

In 2005, Israel had ended its permanent military presence in the Gaza strip which was called "Gaza disengagement" but the region remains effectively blockaded by Israel as it controls the air space, seafront and vehicle access, prohibiting free movement and trade for the two million people who reside in the Gaza strip, Al Jazeera reported.