Israel carries out airstrikes in Gaza

Israeli warplanes carried out a fresh wave of airstrikes across the blockaded Gaza Strip on Saturday, the largest since 2014, according to the Israeli military.

In a statement, the army said the attacks targeted 40 military sites belonging to Palestinian group Hamas in the northern city of Beit Lahiya.

The airstrikes came after dozens of rocket sirens sounded in southern Israel after rockets were fired from the Palestinian territory.

“This attack is an expression of the intelligence and operational capabilities of the IDF, which can intensify and expand according to need and assess the situation,” the statement said.

Saturday’s attacks were the largest since 2014 when the Israeli army launched a devastating war on the Gaza Strip, killing more than 2,000 Palestinians and injuring thousands.

Earlier Saturday, the Israeli army said it had destroyed two underground tunnels in airstrikes in the Gaza Strip.

Tension has been running high across the Gaza Strip amid protests demanding an end to the decades-long Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands and lifting an 11-year blockade, which has gutted the coastal enclave’s economy and deprived its roughly two million inhabitants of basic commodities.

Since the protests began in March, more than 130 people have been killed – and thousands more injured – by Israeli army fire.