JERUSALEM: The Israeli military said it conducted night-time strikes against Hamas positions in the Gaza strip early on Wednesday, after a rocket strike from the Palestinian enclave hit southern Israel.

A little after 2:30 am local time (0030 GMT), the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) hit Hamas positions in southern Gaza, witnesses in the enclave told AFP.

“In response to the rocket fired from Gaza into Israel tonight, IDF fighter jets and attack helicopters struck a Hamas rocket manufacturing site and military post,” the military said.
A military spokesperson told AFP the earlier rocket from Gaza hit an open field in southern Israel.

#WATCH: Benjamin @netanyahu is escorted out of a restaurant after #Palestinian militants in #Gaza fired a rocket at southern #Israel on election day #IsraElex4 #israelelections (Video: @skynewsarabia)
More here: https://t.co/aNojY1uVfE pic.twitter.com/OYbKgSTNUb

— Arab News (@arabnews) March 23, 2021

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties caused by the rocket, the first fired from the Palestinian enclave since January, and there was no immediate claim of responsibility.
The IDF strikes came shortly after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the southern city of Beersheba as part of his efforts to whip up support among voters, as the country was holding the fourth election in less than two years.