Israeli aircraft struck Hamas sites in the Gaza Strip late Saturday, the Israel Defense Forces said, in an escalation of hostilities after earlier cross-border gunfire critically injured an Israeli soldier.
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A Palestinian rioter critically wounded 21-year-old undercover Border Police officer Barel Hadaria Shmueli. Shmueli, a resident of the central Israeli city of Be'er Ya'alov is currently being treated at Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba for life-threatening injuries, the military said.
Amateur video from the Palestinian side showed a protester running up to the concrete barrier and firing a pistol into a hole reportedly used by Shmueli.
According to Palestinian reports, Hamas has arrested the shooter.
In response to the soldier's shooting, Israeli "fighter jets have struck four weapons storage and manufacturing sites belonging to" Hamas, the military said.
Bracing for more hostilities, the military said it had sent additional forces to the Gaza border area. Israeli media reported the military had increased deployment of its Iron Dome anti-missile system.
The demonstration grew violent after rioters approached the fortified border fence, throwing rocks and explosives toward Israeli soldiers from behind a black smoke screen spewing from burning tires and attempting to scale the fence.
"IDF troops responded with riot dispersal means, including when necessary live fire," the military said.
In Gaza, the Hamas-run Health Ministry said 41 Palestinians were wounded by Israeli fire. Two of them, including the 13-year-old boy, were in critical condition.
Khalil al-Haya, a senior Hamas official, told protesters that the confrontation with Israel "was still open."
"March of Return" border protests held in 2018 and 2019 ground to a halt after mediators, including Egypt, Qatar, and the UN-brokered an unofficial deal in which Israel eased some of its economic restrictions on Gaza and allowed Qatar to deliver tens of millions of dollars in monthly payments to needy Gaza families and Hamas salaries.
Since the May war, the new Israeli government, headed by Prime Minister Naftali Bennet, has blocked the Qatari aid, calling for a mechanism to ensure Hamas does not benefit from the cash. It also has demanded Hamas first return the remains of two soldiers killed in a 2014 war and two Israeli civilians believed to be alive.
Running out of patience, Hamas called for Saturday's protest to signal its frustration with Israel delaying the Qatari cash injections.
On Thursday, however, Israel announced an agreement with the Gulf Arab country to resume aid payments to thousands of families in the Gaza Strip step aimed at easing tensions with the Palestinian territory in the wake of the 11-day conflict between Israel and Hamas. Under the new arrangement, the funds are to be transferred by the United Nations directly to Gaza families, while giving Israel oversight over the list of recipients. The payments are expected to begin in the coming weeks.
Just days before that announcement, Gaza terrorists launched a rocket toward Israel that was shot down by the Iron Dome system.
Palestinians have also sporadically launched incendiary balloons toward Israel since the fighting, drawing Israeli strikes on Hamas sites.
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