Hamas launches rocket attack on central Israel

The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, announced on Sunday that it had launched a barrage of rockets towards Tel Aviv in central Israel, marking the first such attack in months, reported Xinhua.

In a statement, the Al-Qassam Brigades said it fired the rockets in response to the Israeli killings of civilians in the Gaza Strip.

Sirens blared in central Israel, and explosions were heard in Tel Aviv, a Xinhua correspondent reported.

Loud explosions were also reported in other Israeli cities. Local media reported that shrapnel from a rocket struck a car in the Israeli city of Herzliya, causing no injuries.

The Israel Defense Forces said in a statement that eight projectiles were identified crossing from the southernmost Gazan city of Rafah into Israeli territory, with a number of them intercepted by the IDF's defense systems.

Later in the day, the Al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement, announced that it had bombed Israeli settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip with missiles.

Speaking with Israeli soldiers serving in reserve duty in the Rafah area, Israel's Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant said on Sunday "Our goals in Gaza are emphasized here in Rafah, to destroy Hamas, return the hostages, and maintain freedom of operation."

The minister stressed that Israeli efforts to return the Israeli hostages who are being held in the Gaza Strip will continue.

Israel's state-owned Kan TV reported Saturday that Israel had agreed to resume talks on a hostage deal with Hamas, mediated by Egypt, Qatar, and the United States.

Later on, Israel thinned out forces in the east of Rafah, which was explained by the army as a move to refresh forces and restore competence, according to a report by the Israeli news website Ynet.