The Israel Defense Forces deployed several Iron Dome batteries Thursday in the northern and southern sectors of the border with the Gaza Strip after assessments made by its Southern Command.
Palestinians have fired 289 rockets and mortar shells from the Gaza Strip into Israel since the beginning of the year, the Defense Ministry reported last week. This is more than any recent year – including the period in 2014 that preceded Operation Protective Edge that began on July 8 of that year.
In comparison, before the beginning of the fighting in Gaza that summer, only 205 rockets and mortar shells were fired at Israel from Gaza. Including the period of the war in Gaza, 4,897 missiles were fired at Israel in 2014. In all of 2017, only 35 such incidents were recorded, compared to 15 in 2016 and 21 in 2015.