On Friday, the Israeli regime launched missiles throughout the Gaza Strip, killing 10 people, including a five-year-old girl, a 23-year-old woman, as well as Taysir al-Jabari, a commander of Islamic Jihad’s military wing.
The Islamic Jihad has fired more than 100 rockets toward the occupied territories after the Israeli regime assassinated one of the Palestinian resistance movement’s senior commanders during a massacre.
The movement called the retaliatory barrage only an “initial response” to the Israeli bloodbath that killed a number of Palestinians in the city of Rafah which is located in the southern part of the Tel Aviv-blockaded Gaza Strip.
"As an initial response to the killing of senior commander Taysir al-Jabari and his brethren martyrs... the al-Quds Brigade covered Tel Aviv, central cities, and areas surrounding Gaza with more than 100 rockets," the Islamic Jihad's military wing said in a statement on Friday.
The Palestinian Health Ministry said well over 80 people had also been injured in the Israeli attack earlier in the day.
There were various reactions to the Zionist regime's deadly attack on the Gaza Strip. The followings are the reactions to Friday’s airstrikes on Gaza:
Yemen’s Ansarullah
Furthermore, Yemen’s popular Ansarullah resistance movement, while condemning Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, underlined the Palestinian nation’s inalienable right to defend itself.
The political bureau of Ansarullah stressed that Palestinians reserve the right to respond to the barbaric aggression of the Tel Aviv regime.
Ansarullah also called on Arab and Muslim nations to honor their responsibilities, and help the Palestinian nation and resistance groups in their struggle against the occupying Israeli regime.
Iraqi resistance groups
The Iraqi resistance movement Asa’ib Ahl al-Haq also said, “We emphasize our constant solidarity with the Palestinian nation, and their resistance to thwart aggressors' plots.”
The anti-terror Kata'ib Hezbollah movement stated, “We are not surprised by the assassination of our brethren in Gaza by the Zionist regime. We are astounded by the silence of the Arab world.”
“Repeated Israeli attacks against the resilient Palestinian nation are the unfortunate outcome of normalization of ties with the Zionist regime. Targeted killings and bombardment of residential buildings is a confirmation of the enemy’s criminal approach,” it added.
United Nations
The UN special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, Tor Wennesland, warned the “dangerous” escalation risked creating the need for more aid at a time when world resources were stretched by other conflicts.
“In the past few hours, at least 10 Palestinians were killed by Israeli air strikes. I am deeply saddened by reports that a five-year-old child has been killed in these strikes. There can be no justification for any attacks against civilians,” said Wennesland.
“The launching of rockets must cease immediately, and I call on all sides to avoid further escalation.”
Arab League
The Arab League in a statement condemned the Israeli aggression against the Gaza Strip, saying, “it holds the occupiers responsible for its consequences and bloody crimes.”
Iran
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan'ani strongly condemned on Friday the Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip.
"It is the legal right of the Palestinian people and resistance groups to act and defend themselves in the face of the aggression and terrorist moves of the Zionist regime," the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman said.
He added that the Israeli regime's new wave of air strikes across the besieged Palestinian enclave was a "criminal, adventurous and provocative" move.
The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson emphasized that the "apartheid regime of Israel" shoulders full responsibility for the "crime" and the consequences of its aggression on Palestine and the Gaza Strip.
Kan'ani urged all countries and international organizations to fulfill their legal, moral and human responsibility to defend the oppressed Palestinian people and condemn the Israeli regime's terrorist moves.
They should also take measures to stop the continuation of such crimes by the Tel Aviv regime, which is the main factor behind instability and insecurity in the region, he said.
Turkey
Ankara “strongly” condemned the Israeli air raids on Gaza and said it is “unacceptable that civilians, including children, lose their lives in attacks”.
The foreign ministry in a statement urged “restraint and common sense” following the deadly attacks on the blockaded enclave.
Egypt
Cairo is working to calm the latest escalation in Gaza. “We hope to reach a consensus to return to calm as soon as possible,” an unnamed security source told AFP news agency. Separately, another source said a delegation from Islamic Jihad may head to Cairo later Saturday.
Qatar
Qatar expressed its “strong condemnation and denunciation” of Friday’s attacks. It stressed “the need for the international community to move urgently to stop the [Israeli] occupation’s repeated attacks against civilians, especially women and children”.
In a statement Friday, the foreign affairs ministry reiterated the State of Qatar’s firm position on the justice of the Palestinian cause and the legitimate rights of the brotherly Palestinian people.
Jordan
Amman demanded that Israel “immediately stop its aggression” on the Gaza Strip. Spokesman Haitham Abu al-Ful warned of “dangerous” consequences that “will only increase tension and violence and deepen the environment of despair”.
Lebanese Hezbollah
In a statement, the Lebanese Hezbollah offered condolence over the martyrdom of some of the Islamic Jihad Movement’s commanders and stressed the necessity of supporting the Palestinians and their resistance movement in order to liberate the Palestinian occupied lands and prisoners.
Islamic Jihad
Secretary-General of the Islamic Jihad, Ziyad al-Nakhalah said the Israeli enemy must expect a "non-stop" confrontation in the wake of the Friday aggression.
There will be no truce following this attack, the Islamic Jihad official said. All resistance groups must struggle under one flag in this fight, Nakhalah said.
In a statement, the Islamic Jihad said, “The enemy has begun a war targeting our people, and we all have the duty to defend ourselves and our people, and not allow the enemy to get away with its actions, which are aimed at undermining the resistance and national steadfastness.”
Hamas
Hamas, Islamic Jihad’s fellow Gaza-based resistance movement, also said the Israeli enemy "committed a new crime" and must "pay its price."
Ghazi Hamad, a senior official for Hamas – the group that governs the Strip – said the latest attack is “a brutal crime, a massacre done by the Israeli occupation against our people”.
Hamas Chief Ismail Haniyeh also condemned the criminal attacks of the Zionist army on the Gaza Strip, calling for stopping the crimes of the Zionist enemy against the Palestinian people.
ZZ/