Israeli airstrikes killed two Hamas members early Saturday following a rocket attack on Israel, in the latest fallout from US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, which has roiled the region and the larger Muslim world.
The Israeli military said it targeted four Hamas facilities in response to rockets fired the previous day, including one that landed in the town of Sderot without causing casualties or major damage.
The military said it struck warehouses and weapons manufacturing sites, after which Hamas said it recovered the bodies of two of its men.
Israel considers Hamas responsible for all rocket fire emanating from Gaza, which is home to other armed groups. Some residents of Sderot and other border towns spent the night in shelters, fearful of a resumption of rocket attacks from Gaza that have led to three Israel-Hamas wars over the past decade.
The flare-up followed clashes Friday between Palestinian protesters and Israeli troops in dozens of West Bank hotspots and along the Gaza border.
Two Palestinians were shot dead in Gaza and dozens were wounded in the West Bank.
In Jerusalem, prayers at Islam’s third-holiest site dispersed largely without incident. Large crowds of worshippers across the Muslim world staged anti-US marches Friday, some stomping on posters of Trump or burning American flags.
Saturday marked the third Palestinian “day of rage” following Trump’s announcement and more protests were expected. In Bethlehem, Palestinians hurled stones at Israeli troops, who responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and stun grenades.
Demonstrations were also taking place in Jerusalem, Ramallah and Gaza City, where some 4,000 gathered. Israel has mobilized troops in case violence breaks out.
Trump’s announcement on Jerusalem, and his intention to move the US Embassy there, triggered denunciations from around the world, with even close allies suggesting he had needlessly stirred more conflict in an already volatile region.
The status of the city lies at the core of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Trump’s move was widely perceived as siding with Israel. Even small crises over Jerusalem’s status and that of the holy sites in its ancient Old City have sparked deadly bloodshed in the past.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Fatah movement and other groups have called for mass protests while its rival, the Gaza-based Islamic militant group Hamas, is calling for a third uprising against Israel, though such appeals have largely fizzled as Palestinians have become disillusioned with their leaders.
