Iron Dome intercepts rocket fired from Gaza over Ashkelon

Second rocket lands in open territory; rocket is first to activate Iron Dome in several months; comes day after mortar fire from Gaza hits South and coincides with naming of Palestinian security prisoners to be released.

By YAAKOV LAPPIN, JPOST.COM STAFF
Iron Dome 370 (photo credit: IDF Spokesperson)
Iron Dome 370
(photo credit: IDF Spokesperson)
The Iron Dome anti-rocket system intercepted a Palestinian projectile fired from the Gaza Strip toward  the southern city of Ashkelon on Monday morning, the IDF said.
A second Palestinian rocket slammed into an uninhabited area in the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council area, an army spokeswoman added.
There were no injuries or damage in the attacks, which triggered a Color Red rocket alert.
The rocket fire came a day after two mortar shells fired from Gaza landed in southern Israel and coincided with the announcement of the names of 26 Palestinian security prisoners set to be released by Israel on Tuesday.
The Israel Prison Service publicized the names late Sunday of the 26 Palestinians to be released from Israeli jails, the second batch of pre-Oslo inmates convicted of terrorism who are to be freed as part of the ongoing peace negotiations between Jerusalem and the Palestinian Authority.
All of the 26 prisoners on the IPS list, 21 of whom are from the West Bank and five of whom are from Gaza, were either convicted of murder or attempted murder.
The rocket, fired from the Gaza Strip, is the first to activate Iron Dome in several months.
In August, an Iron Dome battery intercepted a rocket fired by terrorists in Sinai at the Red Sea city of Eilat.
Interceptors fired by the battery blew up the incoming rocket over Eilat's skies shortly before 1 a.m. on August 13. The rocket had triggered an air raid siren and sent residents and tourists fleeing for cover.
It was the first time Iron Dome went into action over Eilat.
The IDF mobilized a battery to Eilat in July following increased terrorist activities in the Sinai Peninsula.
In June, the IDF stationed an Iron Dome battery in the Haifa region, amid increased regional tensions with Syria.