Israel PM Netanyahu orders 'strong response' to rocket fire from Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered a "strong response" after around 10 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip on Sunday, according to his office.

"The prime minister instructed to deliver a strong response and approved the continuation of the intensified IDF operations in Gaza against Hamas," his office said in a statement, adding that Netanyahu spoke to Defence Minister Israel Katz from his aeroplane as he travelled to Washington.

Minutes after the statement, the Israeli military issued an order for residents of several areas in central Gaza's Deir el-Balah to evacuate ahead of planned strikes, indicating that the rocket fire originated from there.


"To all residents of the Gaza Strip located in the Deir el-Balah area... this is a final and urgent warning before the attack," said Avichay Adraee, the military's Arabic-language spokesman, on X.

"We will launch a severe strike on any area from which rockets are fired... For your safety, you must immediately move south to the known shelters in the Mawasi area."