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Four-Year-Old Israeli Boy Killed in Mortar Strike

Several more injured when rocket from Gaza struck Ashdod synagogue

by
Ben Hartman
August 22, 2014
A picture taken from the southern Israeli border with the Gaza Strip shows smoke rising from the remains of a mortar fired by Palestinian militants into Israel on August 22, 2014. (JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)
A picture taken from the southern Israeli border with the Gaza Strip shows smoke rising from the remains of a mortar fired by Palestinian militants into Israel on August 22, 2014. (JACK GUEZ/AFP/Getty Images)

The rocket fire on Israel continued on Friday, with more than 70 rocket and mortars fired from Gaza by late afternoon.

A four-year-old boy was killed in a mortar strike on a kibbutz near the border with the Gaza Strip on Friday, as rockets and mortars continued to rain into Israel on the 46th day of Operation Protective Edge.

The strike came not long after residents of Gaza border communities began a protest vigil outside the Prime Minister’s residence in Jerusalem, demanding security for themselves and their families.

Hamas also fired a long-range rocket into Tel Aviv early Friday evening, though no injuries were reported.

One of these rockets evaded the Iron Dome interception system and struck a synagogue in Ashdod, leaving three people lightly hurt with shrapnel injuries and causing serious damage to the building. Several other people were treated for shock at the scene. Shortly after that strike a rocket hit a house in Sderot, causing some damage and leaving at least three people suffering from shock, according to paramedics.

The rocket fire has been especially heavy as the fighting resumed on Tuesday and Israel began targeting the higher echelon of the Hamas armed wing, but so far, most of the fire has been directed at communities in southern Israel and especially ones close to the Gaza border. The Hamas threat to target Ben-Gurion Airport outside Tel Aviv remains unrealized as of Friday.

The Israel Defense Forces also continued to strike inside Gaza, hitting more than 30 targets as of the late afternoon, though that number is expected to rise as the day progresses.

Ben Hartman is the crime and national security reporter for the Jerusalem Post. He also hosts Reasonable Doubt, a crime show on TLV1 radio station in Tel Aviv. His Twitter feed is @Benhartman.