Israel strikes over 500 Hamas targets overnight in Gaza: army

JERUSALEM — Israeli air strikes and artillery shelling struck more than 500 targets belonging to the Hamas and Islamic Jihad militant groups in the Gaza Strip overnight, the Israeli military said Monday.

“Overnight IDF (Israeli army) fighter jets, helicopters, aircraft and artillery struck over 500 Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorist targets in the Gaza Strip,” the military said in a statement.

Thick plumes of smoke billowed from the Palestinian enclave as the strikes continued in the early hours of the morning, an AFP correspondent reported.

The Israeli strikes hit numerous multi-storey buildings, including the home of Rawhi Mushtaha, a member of the Hamas political bureau, the army said.

The residence contained a “Hamas terror command centre from which he helped to direct the infiltration into Israel”, it said.

Two Hamas “operational assets” were also struck, including one located in a mosque, the army said, adding a target belonging to Islamic Jihad was also hit.

On Saturday, Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, launched a surprise attack on Israel that has so far killed more than 700 Israelis. Officials in Gaza have reported at least 413 Palestinian deaths

In response, Israel has been carrying out continuous air strikes in the Gaza Strip.

— AFP