By Qais Abu Samra
RAMALLAH (AA) – The Ramallah-based Palestinian government on Wednesday condemned Israeli airstrikes in the blockaded Gaza Strip.
“The non-stop escalation in Gaza is part of [Israel’s] escalation in the West Bank and East Jerusalem,” government spokesman Yousef al-Mahmoud said in a statement.
He held the Israeli government responsible for the safety of Palestinians and their property in the seaside enclave.
“Israel is continuing to violate international law and regulations and is committing crimes against the Palestinian people,” he said.
Israeli warplanes carried out a series of airstrikes across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday in response to rocket fire into southern Israel.
One person was killed in the Israeli attacks, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry.
The Israeli army said it bombed 20 targets throughout Gaza, including an underground tunnel, going on to hold Palestinian group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, for the escalation.
Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman also announced on Wednesday that all crossings into Gaza were being shut and the fishing zone around the Palestinian territory was being limited.
Since March, more than 200 Palestinians have been martyred and thousands more injured by Israeli army fire in anti-occupation protests along Gaza border.
Demonstrators demand an end to Israel’s 12-year Gaza blockade and the right to return to their homes in historical Palestine from which they were driven in 1948 to make way for the new state of Israel.
