Israeli Warplanes Attack Gaza for First Time Since November

Retaliation for Gaza Mortars That Didn't Hit Israel in the First Place

Israeli warplanes attacked the Gaza Strip today, the first time they have done so in nearly six months, since the Egyptian government brokered a truce to end the last Israeli attack on the strip.

Hamas confirmed the Israeli attack, but insisted that there were no casualties, as the missiles hit an “open area” near Beit Lahiya. Israel says the attacks were retaliation for mortar firing from the area.

Which is odd, because while there appear to have been a couple of mortars fired in Gaza today, the indications are that they hit an area along the Gaza-Israel border, but inside the Gaza Strip, though there was an unconfirmed report of a third mortar shell  being found in a field in southern Israel.

Israel’s November attack killed 170 Gazans, and ended with a truce that was supposed to relax the blockade of humanitarian goods from the strip, as well as allowing Gaza fishermen access to five miles out in their own territorial waters. Israel reneged on that promise, however, and has since forced Gaza fishermen back into the narrow pre-war limits.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.