World Bulletin / News Desk

Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Sunday called for reconsidering the reoccupation by Israel of the Gaza Strip, a Palestinian enclave populated by around 1.8 million people, following what he described as a surge in rocket attacks on Israel.

Lieberman was quoted by Israel Radio as saying that the reoccupation of Gaza would be more convenient than small-scale operations against the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas.

A few hours before Lieberman made these remarks, Israeli warplanes launched strikes against 12 targets inside the blockaded Gaza Strip, including ones belonging to Qassam Brigades, Hamas' armed wing.

Israeli chief of staff Benny Gantz met earlier Sunday with army generals to assess the security situation on the border with the Gaza Strip.

Israel Radio quoted one army general as saying that Gantz had issued orders to intensify reaction to rockets fired from Gaza.

Israel holds Hamas responsible for the firing of the rockets, even if the Palestinian group did not fire them itself.

Israel has been blockading Gaza since 2006 when Hamas swept the legislative elections and formed a new government.

Hamas controlled the coastal enclave until the formation of a Palestinian unity government earlier this month following a reconciliation deal with rival Fatah.

Israel strikes Gaza, one Palestinian injured

A Palestinian was injured when Israeli aircraft launched repeated strikes against at least eight targets in the Gaza Strip in the early hours of Sunday.

Israeli warplanes targeted, among others, three sites of Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas, in different areas of the Gaza Strip, eyewitnesses told Anadolu Agency.

They added that the Israelis also bombed a site of Al-Quds Brigades, the military arm of the Islamic Jihad, in western Khan Younis.

Israeli aircrafts fired at a cement factory in western Rafah, eyewitnesses said.

The Israelis also fired three rockets at a site of Al-Ansar Brigades, the military wing of Al-Ahrar movement, in Khan Younis, leaving one Palestinian injured, medical sources said.

Homes close to the targeted site were severely damaged.

Two Palestinians were wounded late Saturday when Israeli soldiers deployed on the border with the Gaza Strip opened fire on Palestinian homes and farmlands.

Israel stepped up its attacks on the Gaza Strip since mid-June, following the disappearance of three Jewish teens from a southern West Bank settlement.

Israeli security agencies have since detained hundreds of Palestinians in the West Bank, including Hamas leaders, lawmakers and former ministers.