Ya’alon warned Hamas it would suffer consequences even more severe than those of the last war in 2014 if it escalated tensions on the border.
Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon warned Saturday night that Israel will hit Hamas harder than before if Gaza terrorists continue to fire rockets at Israeli targets.
“Hamas is the sovereign element in the Gaza Strip, and is therefore responsible for anything which takes place there,” he stated
“We will not tolerate attempts to disrupt the quiet in southern Israel and attempts to disrupt life in the towns surrounding Gaza. That’s why we responded last night with force and assertiveness against Hamas assets in the Strip,” he said, adding that Israel knows “how to hit with greater force if these attempts continue.”
Earlier on, Hamas threatened it would escalate the situation on the border with Gaza and would fire at Israel.
“The blood of the children killed in the Zionist raid will not flow in vain,” Hamas warned in a statement. Hamas’ “patience with the attacks of the enemy has its limits,” it added.
Hamas issued the threat following a retaliatory attack by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) on Hamas targets over the weekend in response to rockets fired by terrorists from Gaza at Israeli civilian targets.
Hamas say two children were killed in the attack.
