BICOM

Israeli military aircraft struck a Hamas munitions site in the central Gaza Strip early this morning, according to an IDF spokesperson. The strike was in response to a rocket attack early last night which originated in Gaza.

The rocket fell in an open area in the Eshkol Regional Council and no injuries were reported. NRG reported that the ISIS affiliate Ansar Beit al-Maqdis has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, Israel struck Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip because it is seen as the entity responsible for keeping the peace in Gaza and maintaining the understandings reached following Operation Protective Edge last summer. This is the fourth rocket fired at Israel since the beginning of August.

The situation in Gaza is highly volatile, as is indicated in a recently published report entitled “No Exit? Gaza & Israel Between the Wars” by the International Crisis Group (ICG).  The report emphasizes that while neither side has an interest in an escalation, the same conditions that existed prior to the previous operation are true today – a blockade, a deep economic and financial crisis, and deep divisions and animosity between the players, including Israel, Hamas, the Palestinian Authority and Egypt.

Earlier this week Hamas political leader Khaled Meshaal claimed he was engaged in negotiations for a long-term ceasefire with Israel, and Tony Blair is reported to have met with him as an intermediary, though Israel denies it is negotiating with Hamas.

Israel has taken a number of steps to improve movement and access in the Gaza Strip over the past year, including agreeing the Gaza Reconstruction Mechanism (GRM) with the UN and the Palestinan Authority to import construction materials, including dual use materials, into the Gaza Strip . In recent months between 1000 and 1500 trucks have entered Gaza each week from Israel, including hundreds of trucks of construction materials, despite the PA not being present to check directly the use of the materials, due to disagreements between the PA and Hamas. Any major change has been hampered by the unwillingness of the Palestinian Authority to accept responsibility for governance in the Gaza Strip. A May 2015 Quartet report stated: “As long as the deadlock continues and the PA is not on the ground in Gaza, there will not be any significant improvement in the situation. An effective and tangible PA presence in Gaza is also a prerequisite for many of the donors who pledged funds.”