THE Israeli Defence Forces claim to have wiped out two senior Hamas chiefs in a precision airstrike just hours after the terror group attacked Tel Aviv.
Yassin Rabia, the head of the West Bank headquarters, and senior member of the unit Khaled Najjar have been killed in the strike in the Tel Sultan – an area in Rafah packed with thousands of displaced Gazans.
ReutersFire rages following an Israeli strike on an area designated for displaced Palestinians in Rafah[/caption]
Hamas said they fired multiple rockets at Israel for the first time in nearly four months as they were seen flying over the Rafah crossing
Rocket sirens were set off across Tel Aviv as the missiles flew overhead
The IDF said it struck a Hamas compound inside Rafah which was being operated by “significant Hamas terrorists a short while ago”.
It added: “An IDF aircraft struck a Hamas compound in Rafah in which significant Hamas terrorists were operating. The strike was carried out against legitimate targets under international law, using precise munitions and on the basis of precise intelligence that indicated Hamas’ use of the area.”
Rabia, the senior leader killed in the airstrikes, reportedly managed “all the Hamas terror activities” in the area, the IDF claims.
He is also said to have carried out multiple attacks against the defence forces which resulted in the killing of Israeli troops.
Najjar, who reportedly managed funds for Hamas in Rafah, also carried out several attacks against the civilians and the IDF between 2001 and 2003, it has been claimed.
While the IDF claims the strike was carried out based on “precision intelligence”, the attack has so far killed at least 35 people and injured dozens more.
“The IDF is aware of reports indicating that as a result of the strike and fire that was ignited several civilians in the area were harmed. The incident is under review,” it said in a statement.
Most of the people killed were women and children, the Hamas-run health ministry Gaza claimed.
Hamas has condemned the attack on what it claimed was “an area crowded with hundreds of thousands of displaced people”.
Thousands of people are said to have taken shelter in the western part of Rafah after escaping from the eastern flanks of the city where the IDF started its ground invasion two weeks ago.
The strike in Rafah came just hours after Hamas launched a chilling barrage of rocket attacks on Israel for the first time in months, forcing civilians to flee their homes.
Rocket sirens were loudly blasted across Tel Aviv after eight missiles were said to have been launched from Gaza with pictures showing Israel’s famous Iron Dome intercepting several of them in mid-air.
Israel’s impressive Iron Dome technology was seen in action for the first time since December as they thwarted the missiles out of the air.
The mobile, all-weather air defence system managed to bring down a number of the rockets.
The dome is made up of missile batteries which are shaped like giant match boxes and are tilted in the direction of Gaza.
The impressive Iron Dome is only set up to detect rockets heading towards highly populated regions in Israel such as Tel Aviv or Jerusalem.
Hamas announced they were aiming for Israel’s largest city, saying: “We fired a large salvo at Tel Aviv in response to the Zionist massacres of civilians.”
It is thought the barrage of missiles came from the city of Rafah where Israel has been constantly bombarding with strikes as they look to end the bloody war.
Just days ago, Israel was told to immediately cease its operation in Rafah, a southern part of the Gaza Strip where countless Palestinians have been sheltering.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) said the humanitarian crisis in Rafah had “deteriorated further”, with the situation now “disastrous”.
ICJ President Nawaf Salam said: “Israel must immediately halt its military offensive.”
The global court accused Israel of limiting aid to Gaza, which they deny.
Chief ICC prosecutor Karim Khan had requested arrest warrants for Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for alleged war crimes in the Strip.
Hamas leaders were also included in the requests for international warrants.
The assault on Rafah in recent weeks comes as the IDF looks to seek and destroy any last remnants of Hamas so the war can be over.
Israel says the city is Hamas’ last major stronghold in the Gaza Strip.
They have been “eliminating terrorists” and “terrorist infrastructure” with hundreds of “terror targets” already being hit.
Repeated airstrikes have also been ongoing since the start of May with three “significant” tunnel shafts also being found.
Military tanks encircled the entire eastern half of the refugee-filled city as the planned assault started.
It is believed the remaining hostages are still being held underground inside the web of Hamas hideouts.
Israel has claimed around 120 hostages are still trapped in Rafah with pressure increasing for them to be finally saved after more than 230 days.
Many of these include young girls and the elderly.
Israel’s Iron Dome reportedly stopped several of the rockets
Shrapnel was also found across parts of Israel
Israel has continuously attacked the last remaining Hamas stronghold city of Rafah since the start of May
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