The United Nations’ envoy for the Middle East peace process on Thursday condemned an overnight rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip, saying in a statement that “such provocations seek only to undermine peace.”
.@nmladenov condemns rocket fire from #Gaza at #Israel. Urges all 2 exercise max restraint & prevent incidents that jeopardize Pal-Isr lives pic.twitter.com/Ygxo1OHidX
— UNSCO (@UNSCO_MEPP) March 2, 2017
Nickolay Mladenov noted that the rocket attack from Gaza, which is ruled by the Islamist terrorist group Hamas, “is the third such incident in the past 30 days after a period of almost four months of quiet.” He called on both sides to exercise restraint so as not to “jeopardize the lives of Palestinians and Israelis.”
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the rocket, which fell in an uninhabited area near the coastal city of Ashkelon and caused no injuries or damage. There have been no reports of retaliation by the Israeli military. Israel holds Hamas, the de facto governing authority in Gaza, responsible for all outgoing rocket fire.
Hamas arrested 550 individuals with alleged ties to other jihadist groups and referred them to military court for firing rockets into Israel or manufacturing them, the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al-Awsat reported Thursday. Hamas is said to be moving against the jihadists after reaching an agreement with Egypt to prevent them from entering the Sinai Peninsula.
In January, Mladenov lay flowers at a memorial service for four Israeli soldiers who were killed in Jerusalem when a truck rammed into them. At the memorial service, he connected terror against Israel to terror in other nations in the world, saying, “We need to stand united against this rise of violent extremism. Terrorism will never be tolerated. There are no excuses.”
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