A Palestinian rocket struck a college campus in southern Israel on Wednesday, killing a man and lightly injuring another person, Israeli medical officials said.
The rocket barrage occurred hours after an Israeli airstrike killed five Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, and raised the likelihood of even more intense Israeli attacks. Palestinian officials said two people, including a civilian, were killed in a second Israeli airstrike carried out at the time of the rocket attack.
The Hamas militant group, which controls Gaza, claimed responsibility for the rocket fire. It said it had launched more than 20 rockets at Israel, including eight at Sderot, the town where the deadly strike took place.
Israeli media said the rocket exploded in a parking lot at Sapir College. Israeli officials said a student, about 30 years old, was struck in the heart by shrapnel and died. Israeli TV stations showed a second man being carried on a stretcher with wounds to his legs.
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Early Wednesday, an Israeli aircraft blew up a minivan carrying Hamas gunmen, killing five militants, including two key masterminds of rocket attacks on Israel, the militant group said. Burned bodies in camouflage uniforms were visible in the white minivan. Hamas officials said the dead included a senior engineer who built rockets and commander who led a rocket squad. Two other Hamas members were wounded in the airstrike, according to Hamas and health officials. |