Rockets intercepted over greater Tel Aviv; IAF targets 160 Gazan terror sites overnight

Following a barrage of some 160 Gazan rockets fired into Israeli civilian areas all day Tuesday, the IAF fires back at terror sites throughout the night.

By YAAKOV LAPPIN, JPOST.COM STAFF
Rockets fired by Hamas from Gaza fly over Israel, July 8, 2014. (photo credit: JERUSALEM POST)
Rockets fired by Hamas from Gaza fly over Israel, July 8, 2014.
(photo credit: JERUSALEM POST)
As Operation Protective Edge entered its second day on Wednesday, the Israel Air Force attacked terror sites in the Gaza Strip, while residents of greater Tel Aviv heard sirens and explosions.
Sirens wailed in 20 different municipalities, including Tel Aviv, Rishon Letzion, Modi'in, Ashdod, Ashkelon, and the Eshkol regional council. Residents of Ra'anana also reported hearing sirens.
The Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepted at least two of the missiles, though residents of Tel Aviv heard more explosions.
The remnants of a rocket intercepted by Iron Dome fell on a road in Ness Ziona.
Intercepted rocket lands on main road in Nes Tziyina, central Israel/HATZOLAH ISRAEL
The Hamas military wing has claimed responsibility for the missile fire at Tel Aviv, reports indicate.
The IDF struck 160 terror targets across Gaza overnight between Tuesday and Wednesday, and 440 targets since the beginning of the operation this week against Hamas in Gaza to stop rocket fire on
Israel.
Targets hit by the air force include 10 tunnels and five Hamas government buildings, including the ministry of interior, the national security ministry, and a naval police position.
The air force also hit 118 underground rocket launchers, including infrastructure designed for mid-range and long-range rocket fire against Israel. The attacks caused significant damage to the rocket firing capabilities of terrorist organizations, the IDF said.
Israel Navy ships attacked targets belonging to Hamas's naval force.
In a joint IDF and Shin Bet strike, an air strike killed Hafez Hamed, 35, who was a senior Islamic Jihad member responsible for rocket fire on Sderot in recent days.
The homes of two senior Hamas members, used as command and control centers, were also hit. The homes belonged to Rahad Atar, responsible for Hamas's Rafah brigade, and Muhammad Sinuar, who commands the Khan Younis brigade.
Among the IAF's strikes on Tuesday were the homes of Hamas brigade commanders.
The homes belonged to Muhammad Sba'at, a senior member of Hamas's rocket launching formations in Beit Hanount, who was involved in several recent rocket attacks against Israel, Amin Ibrahim Al-Alba'an, a Hamas member, and Abu Jarad, a Hamas member from northern Gaza who has been engaged in terrorism against Israel, Muhammad Sa'aban, commander of Hamas's naval commando unit, and Hafiz Mohammed Hamad, a senior Islamic Jihad member.