‘Several dead’ in Israeli retaliation against rocket attacks from Syria |Syria |Israel |rocket attacks
The Syrian army says at least five civilians died when Israel targeted the Quneitra area in the Syrian Golan Heights. An Israeli defence official claims the assault killed four Palestinian militants, who were responsible for the attacks on its territory.
Islamic Jihad
Israeli officials say the rockets targeting Israel were fired from the Quneitra region by the Iranian-backed Palestinian military faction Islamic Jihad. The group acknowledges receiving support from Iran, but denies it fired rockets into Israel.
It had previously threatened action if one of its members died in Israeli detention. Mohammed Allan had been on a hunger strike, but ended the fast a day before the strikes following intervention from an Israeli court.
The faction’s leaders are based in the Syrian capital Damascus. Most of its followers are in the Gaza Strip, an area bordering Israel, which is dominated by the Hamas group. It has largely been observing a truce with Israel following a 2014 war in the Palestinian enclave.