A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip exploded in the Israeli town of Sderot Friday night, causing damage to several parked car.
There were no casualties, though two people reportedly suffered shock.
“There was a huge explosion. I heard glass shatter and car alarms. The house’s walls shook,” a resident told the Ynet news website.
The rocket was the third launch of the evening, and came shortly after Israel struck Hamas targets in Gaza in response to the previous projectile-fire.
The Israel Defense Forces said it hit a training facility and a weapons depot belonging to the terror group.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said that 14 people were wounded, suffering what it described as light to moderate injuries. Reuters reported that as many as 25 people were wounded, including six children.
Witnesses told the news agency that most of the casualties were not Hamas men but civilians who lived in a building near the training camp.
Israel holds Hamas responsible for all attacks emanating from the Strip, which the terror group still largely controls despite handing over some power back to the Palestinian Authority.
The strike on Hamas positions came shortly after the army said its Iron Dome missile defense system intercepted a rocket fired from Gaza. Sirens blared in communities near the Gaza border soon afterwards, as a second rocket was fired. The army said it did not identify an impact.
The IDF said there were no injuries or damage from those earlier rockets.
The military had warned more rockets could follow, and told of the Gaza periphery to remain close to protected spaces and bomb shelters.
Earlier two Palestinians were killed in border clashes sparked by the deeply controversial declaration by US President Donald Trump recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital earlier this week.
A third man was in “very critical” condition after being shot in the head during the clashes, the Gaza health ministry said.
The Israeli army said around 4,500 Palestinians “participated in violent riots at six locations along the border with the Gaza Strip.” It said troops shot at some of the rioters, but did not specify how many were wounded.
A number of rockets were fired at Israel from Gaza on Thursday, as Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called for a new Palestinian intifada, or uprising.
Last week, the Islamic Jihad launched a dozen mortar shells at an army post northeast of the Strip, causing no injuries but some damage to army equipment.
The military retaliated with six strikes on terrorist positions in Gaza, four of them belonging to the Islamic Jihad and two to Hamas, which rules the coastal enclave.
Furious protesters have joined rallies across the globe after terror group Hamas called for a “day of rage” in response to the US President’s announcement.
Angry protests have spread to Berlin, Indonesia and Malaysia.
Hundreds of Brits headed to the US Embassy in London to protest President Trump’s decision.
Protestors held placards and chanted “Free Palestine”, “Hands off Jerusalem” and “lift the siege of Gaza” outside the US Embassy in London’s wealthy Mayfair neighbourhood.
Protests have been seen outside US embassies all over the world, with thousands of demonstrators coming out in Berlin to show their disgust at Trump’s move.
Demonstrators were seen waving Palestinian, Turkish and Syrian flags in front of the Brandenburg Gate, next to the US embassy in Berlin.
Muslims in Indonesia and Malaysia joined rallies outside the countries’ US embassies with Malaysia’s sports minister Khairy Jamaluddin threatening “the world will rise against the United States”.
Hundreds have also taken part in protests in Iran where state TV aired footage of marchers chanting “Death to America” and “Death to Israel” while holding up Palestinian flags and banners.
Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, which runs the Gaza Strip, has called for a “day of rage” with its leader Ismail Haniya said a new upraising should be launched.
Hundreds more police officers have been deployed in Jerusalem’s Old City today with further conflicts feared.
Thursday saw clashes between Palestinians and Israeli troops in cities throughout the West Bank – including the holy city of Bethlehem – with at least 16 Palestinians wounded.
Early reports suggested injuries were mostly from tear gas and rubber bullets, but at least one demonstrator was hurt by live fire.
Trump’s announcement was met by an major diplomatic backlash as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lavished praise on the president.
EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini said the decision could take the region “backwards to even darker times”.
While Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was “deeply concerned” and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said it would put the region in a “ring of fire”.
The United Nations Security Council will meet later today to discuss Trump’s announcement.
Unrest looks set to continue with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas threatening to refuse to meet US Vice President Mike Pence when he visits the region later this month.
In Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah, the head of Hezbollah, called for a mass demonstration on Monday while protests are also planned in Turkey and Malaysia.
Demonstrations have even been seen in the US with several hundred protesters taking to the street in Chicago chanting “free Palestine”.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said the US had “withdrawn from its role in the peace process” and insisted Jerusalem was the “eternal capital of the State of Palestine”.
Theresa May insisted Jerusalem’s status should be agreed by both Israel and Palestine and said she wants the two countries to have the city as a “shared capital”.
She said she disagreed with Donald Trump’s “unhelpful” decision, after earlier telling the House of Commons: “We continue to support a two-state solution. We recognise the importance of Jerusalem.”
France’s Emmanuel Macron called on the White House to step back from the announcement — while Pope Francis defended the “status quo” of the city as he prayed that “wisdom and prudence prevail”.
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