IDF fires shells into Gaza following gunfire

IDF troops fired mortar shells into the Gaza Strip after shots were fired towards Israeli workers along the border fence.

“Earlier today, there were reports of gunfire at works on the perimeter fence in the southern Gaza Strip. Work on the fence was stopped and mortars were fired,” the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit said in a statement on Sunday morning.

A force was then scrambled to the spot where the incident occurred, there were no injuries or casualties to troops or the civilian contract workers.

The Eshkol Regional Council put out a statement saying that following the incident all work, including agricultural work near the fence has been suspended, and all routes leading to the fence have been blocked by the military.

There was otherwise no change in guidelines to residents, the statement added.

The shots came after days of explosive balloons being launched into southern Israel from the Hamas-ruled coastal enclave.

On Thursday the IDF launched retaliatory strikes against targets in northern Gaza in response to explosive balloons that ignited several fires in southern Israel. Israel Police have also been called to device explosive devices attached to balloon clusters, including in the city of Arad, close to 80 kilometers away.

“During the day, explosive balloons were launched from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory,” the IDF said in a statement at the time. “In response, a short while ago, an IDF fighter jet and an IDF aircraft struck an infrastructure used for underground activities of the Hamas terror organization in the Northern Gaza Strip.”