Hamas test-fired dozens of short-range rockets in the Gaza Strip on Friday, with Israeli sources estimating that at least 30 were fired.
The rockets were aimed at areas not under Israeli control, Army Radio reported.
Israel’s Defence Ministry announced late last month that it had foiled an attempt to smuggle metal pipes and motors into the Gaza Strip, which could have been used for building rockets and tunnels.
The Gaza-bound shipment came through Tarkumiya, a small village outside of Hebron in the West Bank. The trucks were headed to the Kerem Shalom crossing, where they would enter the coastal enclave.
Inspectors at the Tarkumiya crossing, along with the Shin Bet security service, intercepted the packages, which were believed to have been on their way to Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the ministry said in a statement.
According to officials, the “large shipment” consisted of “hundreds of pipes with a diameter under four inches, with a special kind of screw that is used for the production of mortars and rockets”.
Also in May, Israel’s Tax Authority uncovered an attempt to sneak four tonnes of ammonium chloride into Gaza, concealed in 36 tonnes of table salt. The chemical compound is used mainly in agriculture as a fertiliser, but like many nitrogen-based fertilisers, can also be turned into an explosive.
