An array of Palestinian militant groups launched rockets into the Mediterranean Sea off the Gaza Strip on Tuesday at the start of what they called their first-ever joint exercise, in what Israeli officials believe was meant as a show of force organized by Iran.
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Gaza is run by Hamas and also home to other militant groups, including Islamic Jihad. The exercise was announced on behalf of a joint command set up by the groups in 2018.
Authorities in Gaza restricted movement along the main coastal road and barred fishing for the duration of the exercises, which were to continue for a period of 24 hours and included the use of aerial drones.
The drill was held by the Joint Command Room, which brings together a dozen militant factions but is dominated by Hamas.
A masked spokesman for the terrorist groups said the "defensive maneuvers" also demonstrated their rejection of the "agreements of shame," referring to the recent US-brokered normalization accords between Israel and a number of Arab states.
The Palestinians view the Abraham Accords as a betrayal of their cause because the Arab countries recognized Israel without securing concessions in the long-moribund peace process. Hamas is a sworn enemy of Israel that has rejected past attempts at a negotiated solution to the conflict.
Israel and Egypt have maintained a crippling blockade on Gaza since Hamas seized power, which Israel says is necessary to keep the militants from building up their arsenal. Critics of the blockade view it as collective punishment of the territory's 2 million Palestinian residents.
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