Jerusalem: Israel's military said it struck two sites in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, after identifying an attempted rocket launch from within the Palestinian enclave. There were no immediate reports of casualties. However, eyewitnesses reported hearing explosions as flames and smoke rose from one targeted site. They added ambulances had rushed to the scene, Xinhua news agency reported. According to a statement from Israel's military, the Israeli Air Force targeted an area from which the attempted rocket launch was made earlier in the day.

The military added it also struck a launcher in Gaza. Earlier, a spokesperson for the military said a failed rocket launch from Gaza had been identified. The projectile fell inside the strip, the spokesperson added. No Palestinian faction has claimed responsibility for the launch. The incidents took place amid a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, which took effect on January 19. Earlier on Sunday, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered the military to prepare for a yearlong presence in refugee camps in the West Bank as Israel escalates the ongoing large-scale military campaign in the occupied Palestinian territory.

The Israeli military expanded its operations early Sunday into Qabatiya, a city in the northern West Bank, with troops and bulldozers entering the area, according to the Palestinian news agency WAFA. Eyewitnesses reported infrastructure destruction, raids on homes, searches, interrogations, and roads blocked by earth mounds. 

(IANS)