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Israel Closes Tel Aviv Airport After Barrage Of Rockets From Gaza; One Woman Killed In Attack

Swarajya Staff

May 12, 2021, 10:26 AM | Updated 10:26 AM IST


Civilian bus attacked (Image Credits: Israel Defense Forces)
Civilian bus attacked (Image Credits: Israel Defense Forces)

Israel’s transportation authority has stated that it is closing the country’s main international airport following a barrage of rocket fire on the Tel Aviv metropolis area.

As per reports, over 130 rockets were fired from Gaza at Tel Aviv on Tuesday night in what is described as the biggest militant attack ever on Israel’s largest urban centre.

One person was killed on the outskirts of Tel Aviv after a rocket attack by Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip.

According to media reports, a woman was killed in the town of Rishon Lezion when a rocket hit her directly; the Zaka aid organisation confirmed her death.

A bus in the city of Holon was also struck by a rocket and burned out, leaving at least six people injured in the attack, DPA news reported citing Times of Israel.

The greater Tel Aviv area was in the cross-hairs of Palestinian militants, who sent a barrage of rockets towards the coastal metropolis, marking the heaviest attack the city has faced so far.

The Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv was closed to landings and departures due to the attacks, and flights were diverted to Cyprus.

The Islamist Hamas movement in charge of the coastal enclave had vowed a "harsh" rocket attack on Tel Aviv.

The official account of Israel Defense Forces shared a video of the Iron Dome defense system intercepting a barrage of rockets over Tel Aviv and central Israel.

Notably, Israel had earlier announced the killing of the commander of the Hamas anti-tank missile unit, Iyad Fathi Faik Sharir who was in charge of carrying out anti-tank missile attacks on the nation.

With IANS Inputs


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