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On the morning of May 6, 2019 the eighth round of escalation, which had lasted for two days, came to an end. It began following Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) sniper fire targeting IDF soldiers. The IDF responded by attacking Hamas targets, killing two operatives of its military-terrorist wing. The following day a massive barrage of rockets and mortar shells began, which gradually expanded to cities up to 40 kilometers from the Gaza Strip, including Ashqelon, Ashdod, Qiryat Gat, Qiryat Malachi and Beersheba.. During the round of escalation 690 rockets and mortar shells were fired at Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. In response the IDF attacked more than 350 targets in the Gaza Strip, including targets of high value for the terrorist organizations. During the events four Israelis were killed and 123 were wounded (most of them treated for slight injuries and shock). In addition, 27 Palestinians were killed, most of them (16) were identified as terrorist operatives, half of them PIJ operatives.
The ceasefire was reached through intensive Egyptian mediation. As in the past, it can be assumed it was accompanied by understandings, primarily economic support for the Gaza Strip and opening the crossings. However, so far the ITIC does not have any details about the understandings accompanying the ceasefire. A “senior Palestinian” said that they included restoring the fishing zone to 15 nautical miles, improving the supply of electricity and fuel, and removing restrictions on Gazan imports and exports (issues agreed on in the past).
