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Israel vows not to allow Hamas in Gaza to arm itself

Xinhua, August 23, 2016 Adjust font size:

Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Tuesday Israel would not allow Hamas to arm itself, two days after it carried nearly 50 attacks in the Gaza Strip.

"Hamas is not interested in solving the crisis - but to rebuild its power," Lieberman said during a visit to an Israeli military post in northern Israel on Tuesday, according to a statement from his office.

"Instead of building buildings from taxpayers' money, it builds undergrounds terror tunnels," the minister said, adding Israel will not let Hamas arm itself and will respond "harshly" to any future attacks from the Gaza Strip.

The minister said his formula for keeping the quiet between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip is to demilitarize the enclave in exchange for its rehabilitation.

"Those who talk about removing the blockade on the strip and easing more restrictions, this should be carried out amid demilitarization," Lieberman said.

Lieberman, a known hawk, was appointed Defense Minister in May, replacing Moshe Ya'alon, a moderate right-wing politician, amid a political deal with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Four rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip toward the southern Israeli town of Sderot on Sunday evening, with two of them hitting houses and causing damage.

A group affiliated with the Salafist and sharing the logo of the Islamic State movement in the enclave claimed responsibility for the rockets attack.

Israel retaliated with air strikes and shelling in the northern Gaza Strip, hitting nearly 50 targets, according to military sources. The Gaza Health Ministry said two civilians were injured in one of the strikes.

Israel and Gaza, ruled by the Islamist Hamas organization since 2007, have fought several rounds of fighting in recent years, wreaking havoc on the enclave, which Israel occupied in the 1967 Mideast War, and evacuated in 2005.

The last round of fighting between Israel and Hamas took place in the summer of 2014, claiming the lives of more than 2,200 Palestinians and over 70 Israelis.

Israeli imposed a blockade on the strip in the wake of Hamas's takeover, allowing a restricted transfer of goods in and out of the enclave, and limiting most exits and entries of people alongside Egypt, which overlooks the Rafah crossing on its turf. Endit