Israel came under fire from the Gaza Strip on the night of February 23. According to the Israel Defense Forces, six rockets were fired, 5 of them were intercepted by the air defense system, another fell on non-residential territory. There were no reports of casualties or damage..

The Israeli army responded by striking targets in the Gaza Strip hours later.. The escalation comes a day after an Israeli army raid in the West Bank that killed 11 people, reports The Guardian..

Yesterday, February 22, in the morning, the Israeli military launched a raid on the city of Nablus in the West Bank of the Jordan River, the purpose of which was to detain representatives of radical Palestinian groups. Palestinian officials said at least 103 people were injured, many with gunshot wounds..

This raid was one of the biggest in the last year.. The international community expressed deep concern about the escalation in the region, and also called for a reduction in tension. Chief EU diplomat Josep Borrell stressed that the use of force must be proportionate and pointed to the need to respect international humanitarian law.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price said Washington acknowledges Israel's security concerns, but is also deeply concerned about the large number of wounded and civilian deaths..

The escalation comes at a critical juncture in Israel-Palestinian relations, with the new Israeli government promising a hard line while pushing for settlement expansion in the West Bank..

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Earlier it was reported that the Israeli Prime Minister legalized nine settlements in the West Bank due to the recent terrorist attacks in Jerusalem.. Benjamin Netanyahu's decision sparked a wave of misunderstanding in Europe. The European Union called on the country's government to stop the construction of settlements and urgently cancel this decision.