‘Big missile’ attack on Tel Aviv, says Hamas armed wing

Israel’s army says at least 8 rockets fired from Gaza’s Rafah; several projectiles intercepted

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Hamas armed wing al-Qassam Brigades said it launched a "big missile" attack on Tel Aviv on May 26 as the Israeli military sounded sirens in the central city warning of possible incoming rockets.

In a statement on its Telegram channel on May 26, al-Qassam Brigades said the rockets were launched in response to what it called "Zionist massacres against civilians".

Hamas-run Al-Aqsa TV said the rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip, with an AFP correspondent reporting that rockets were seen being fired from Rafah.

Israel's army said at least eight rockets were fired towards central areas of the country from Gaza's far-southern city of Rafah, where its forces have been battling Palestinian militants.

The military said that "a number of the projectiles were intercepted" by Israeli air defences.

Rocket sirens had not been heard in Tel Aviv for the past four months.

The reason for the sirens was not immediately stated by the Israeli military.

Israeli emergency medical services said they had received no reports of casualties.

The attack signalled that the Islamist faction was still able to fire long-range rockets despite more than seven months of devastating Israeli military offensive from the air and the ground.

Earlier in the day, Israel's armed forces bombarded Gaza, with air strikes and artillery shelling raining down overnight on the northern, central and southern areas.

Fighting has centred on Rafah, where Israel has vowed to destroy the last remaining Hamas battalions despite a chorus of international opposition to a ground invasion of the city.