Israeli army artillery bombs Hamas military post in southern Gaza

Gaza, March 7 (Xinhua) -- Israeli army artillery struck on Thursday afternoon a military lookout post in southern Gaza Strip, close to the border with Israel, with no injuries reported, according to field paramedics and eyewitnesses.

They said that an Israeli army fighting drone fired two missiles at a lookout post that belongs to al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Islamic Hamas movement that has been ruling the Gaza Strip since 2007.

The military lookout post was completely damaged, the paramedics and the eyewitnesses told Xinhua.

On Thursday before dawn, Israeli warplanes carried out two airstrikes on two military training facilities in southern Gaza Strip that belong to Hamas and the Islamic Jihad.

The airstrike on southern Gaza Strip was carried out in response to firing a homemade rocket from the coastal enclave into southern Israel with no injuries or damages reported, an Israeli army spokesman's statement said.

Over the past few days, Israeli warplanes and drones have been carrying out daily airstrikes on Gaza militants' posts and facilities in response to releasing dozens of arson balloons carrying explosives from the Gaza Strip into southern Israel.

Tension between Israel and Gaza militant groups, mainly Hamas, has been growing while a senior Egyptian security intelligence delegation has been carrying out marathon visits to Gaza to restore calm between the two sides.

The delegation arrived in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday and held talks with leaders of Hamas and other Palestinian factions on a calm understanding that was brokered by Egypt and the United Nations besides Qatar last November.

The Egyptian delegation left back to Israel on Tuesday evening and arrived again in the Gaza Strip on Thursday afternoon to carry on with their mediation to restore calm between Israel and Hamas.

The calm understanding was reached to slow down a growing tension between the two sides that was a result of the rallies and protests, better known as "the Great March of Return," which have been going on since March 30 last year.

Gaza Health officials said that since the start of the marches of return, the Israeli army shot and killed more than 260 Palestinians and wounded more than 26,000 others. Organizers of the marches want Israel to end its blockade.