JERUSALEM (JTA) — Hamas must prevent the firing of rockets from Gaza on Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asserted after Israel retaliated for rocket fire with airstrikes on what it called “Hamas sites,” reportedly killing Palestinian siblings, 10 and 6.
Netanyahu’s remarks on Sunday morning at the weekly Cabinet meeting came after four rockets were fired on southern Israel on Friday night. The rockets landed in open areas, causing no injuries.
Israel responded early Saturday morning by bombing what it called four “Hamas sites in the Gaza Strip.” A Palestinian boy, 10, and his sister, 6, who lived in a home located near one of the sites, a Hamas training camp, died as a result of the airstrikes, according to Palestinian reports.
“Our policy regarding the Gaza Strip is clear: Israel will not accept rocket fire of any kind from the strip at its territory,” Netanyahu said. “The IDF will respond to any such provocation. Israel holds Hamas responsible for all firing carried out from the Gaza Strip toward Israel; Hamas must prevent such firing.”
Netanyahu also said he was waiting for a response from Israel’s attorney general to his query requesting permission to expel to Gaza the families of West Bank terrorists. He said the government also was studying the possibility of relocating terrorists’ homes within the West Bank.
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