Israel mobilizes after Gaza rocket attack, escalation looms

Aron Heller, The Associated PressKFAR SABA, Israel -- An early morning rocket fired from the Gaza Strip demolished a house in central Israel on Monday, wounding seven people and prompting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to cut short a trip to Washington. The military quickly mobilized troops and called up reserves, setting the stage for a potential major conflagration shortly before Israel's upcoming elections.

The Israeli military said militants from Gaza's ruling Hamas movement fired the rocket from one of their launching pads in southern Gaza Strip, near Rafah. Maj. Mika Lifshitz, a military spokeswoman, said it was a self-manufactured rocket with a range of 120 kilometres . She added that two armour and infantry brigades were being mobilized to the Gaza front and that a limited drafting of reserves was also taking place.

Netanyahu, in Washington to meet President Donald Trump, held emergency consultations with military officials back in Israel and decided to cut his visit short, cancelling a planned address to the AIPAC conference and meetings with congressional leaders. Monday's attack came 10 days after rockets were fired from Gaza toward Israel's densely populated commercial capital of Tel Aviv. The Israeli military at the time struck back and the sides appeared to be hurtling toward another confrontation. But Gaza's Hamas leaders said the rocket was fired accidently and calm was quickly restored.

"We do not yet have a full understanding of who exactly ordered the firing of the rocket," said Eran Lerman, a former deputy director at Israel's National Security Council. "But clearly this is no longer something that can be explained away as a mistake or a technical failure." The outburst comes at a sensitive time for both sides. Israel is holding national elections in 15 days. Netanyahu, who also served as defence minister, is locked in a tight fight for re-election and has faced heavy criticism from his opponents for what they say has been an ineffective response to Gaza militants.

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