The IDF struck a Palestinian Islamic Jihad rocket crew at a Gaza rocket launch site on Wednesday afternoon, for the second time in 24 hours.
According to reports, one of the operatives was killed while at least one other was injured.
Shortly after the strikes at the launch site, the IDF confirmed that it was striking additional Islamic Jihad targets in the Gaza Strip, although did not provide further details.
Early on Tuesday evening, the IDF had also struck a Gaza rocket crew on its way to fire on Israel, near the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Yunis.
There were also other reports of such preemptive strikes against rocket crews on Tuesday and, while there have been some confirmed similar reports in recent years, the trend of hitting rocket crews before they fire is still a relatively new one.
Despite the airstrikes, Israel is expecting Gaza terror groups, especially Islamic Jihad to respond at some point following the IDF’s overnight Monday-Tuesday strike of three top Islamic Jihad commanders.
Following the initial strikes, Israel has been on high alert nearly all day Tuesday and Wednesday, waiting for the expected response, and to see if Hamas will join the campaign.
If Hamas joins in a serious way, the conflict could be extended longer than the multiple rounds Israel has had with Islamic Jihad in the past, which have all ended in less than 72 hours.
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