JERUSALEM—“I spoke to the IDF Chief of Staff and the head of the Shin Bet There has been a criminal attack on the State of Israel and we will respond forcefully. In light of the security events I have decided to cut short my visit to the US. In a few hours I will meet with President Trump; I will return to Israel immediately afterwards in order to manage our actions from close at hand,” said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after a rocket hit a private home in Moshav Mishmeret in the Kfar Saba region, north of Tel Aviv, early Monday mornin.
The attack injured the six residents in the house, all of which were evacuated to the hospital. A 50-year-old woman was mildly wounded with burns and wounds from shrapnel, three other adults were lightly wounded and two toddlers were lightly wounded. Several neighbors are being treated for shock.
Security forces have confirmed that the rocket came from the Gaza Strip.
The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories, Major General Kamil Abu Rokon, announced Monday the closure of the Erez and Kerem Shalom crossings, as well as the reduction of the fishing area in the Gaza Strip until further notice.
The leader of the Blue and White Party, Benny Gantz, a former IDF chief of staff, tweeted, “Those who do not respond with force and instead [pay]Hamas, dismiss attacks on the citizens of the south, and scorn the attack on Tel Aviv, now get rockets in the Hasharon region.”
“Will he now, as well, be satisfied with Hamas’s claim of an error or will he finally focus on the security of the citizens of the state and not on his legal issues?” Gantz continued.