On Wednesday, Palestinian militants fired numerous rockets from Gaza Strip into Israel, while Israel continued to launch airstrikes that resulted in the deaths of 23 Palestinians, including three senior militants and at least 10 civilians.
Although a cease-fire was announced by a state-run Egyptian TV station, it failed as fighting continued on Wednesday night.
Early on Thursday, the Israeli military announced that it had targeted the commander of Islamic Jihad’s rocket squad in an airstrike on a building in the southern Gaza Strip.
In his prime-time TV address, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel had dealt a harsh blow to the militants, but he cautioned that the round was not yet over.
The heavy fighting between the sides in months brought the region closer to a full-blown war. However, Israel avoided attacks on the ruling Hamas militant group, targeting only the smaller and more militant Islamic Jihad faction, while Hamas remained on the sidelines.
Israel and Hamas have fought four wars since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007. Late on Wednesday, Egypt tried to facilitate a cease-fire, which Israel confirmed it would evaluate based on actions on the ground, not declarations.