VideoIsrael carried out several airstrikes on the Gaza Strip, one of which killed a senior Islamic Jihad figure, the Palestinian militant group said. CreditCredit…Mohammed Saber/EPA, via Shutterstock
TEL AVIV — Israel carried out a series of air strikes on the Gaza Strip on Friday, and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group said one of the strikes killed a senior figure in the faction.
The airstrikes culminated nearly a week of rising tensions following the arrest of another senior fighter from the same group in the West Bank.
A senior Israeli defense official said the attacks were aimed at Islamic Jihad and hit several targets, including a residential building in Gaza and at least four fighters carrying anti-tank missiles. At least seven people, including a 5-year-old girl, were killed and about 40 civilians were injured, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health.
Islamic Jihad said a military wing commander, identified as Taysir al-Jabari, had been killed.
“The enemy has launched a war targeting our people and we must all defend ourselves and our people,” Islamic Jihad said in a statement.
The Israeli defense official said several people were killed in the airstrikes and confirmed that one of the targets was Mr Al Jabari.
Rescuers evacuated a wounded man after the airstrike. Credit… Mohamed Salem/Reuters
Plumes of smoke billowed over the Gaza skyline and on the ground, crowds of rescuers and others gathered in the street near where the Islamic Jihad commander was killed.
Israel closed crossing points into the Gaza Strip this week in anticipation of a retaliatory attack following Monday’s arrest of another high-ranking member of Islamic Jihad in the West Bank. Gaza has been under a strict blockade since 2007.
— Ronen Bergman and Raja Abdulrahim
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