The Israeli army said two projectiles were launched Sunday from the Gaza Strip, with Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad claiming responsibility for the rocket fire, which caused no casualties or damage.
"Two projectiles were identified crossing from the central Gaza Strip into Israeli territory," the army said in a statement, adding that air raid sirens sounded in the area of Netivot, a town about 10 kilometers (six miles) from the Palestinian territory.
The military statement said "one projectile was intercepted, and one fell in an open area."
The armed wing of Islamic Jihad, which has fought alongside Hamas in Gaza against Israeli forces, announced that it had targeted Netivot "with two rockets in response to the crimes committed by the Zionist enemy against our people."
It was the first time in several months that launches from Gaza threatened Netivot, home to about 50,000 residents.
The launches came as Israel steps up its operations around Gaza City, the territory's largest urban center, which the army has said it intends to capture in a bid to defeat Hamas and return the hostages taken during the group's October 7, 2023 attack.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Sunday that the war in Gaza could end if hostages were released and Hamas laid downs its weapons.
His statements during a press conference with his Danish counterpart in Jerusalem come a day after Hamas reiterated its long-standing position that it would free all hostages if Israel agreed to an end to the war and withdraw its forces from Gaza City.
