GAZA, April 7 (UPI) -- Political changes following general elections in Israel and the Palestinian territories appear to have fuelled and increased Middle East violence.
Israel raided several targets in Gaza Friday as Palestinian militants fired a new type of more sophisticated locally-made rockets, dubbed Quds, at Israel.
Islamic Jihad's Quds Brigades claimed responsibility for firing two rockets at the city of Mejdel in south Israel, vowing to continue armed resistance, "the best and only means for recovering occupied land."
Israeli sources said the rockets hit the city's industrial zone, but made no mention of possible casualties.
Israeli helicopters and F-16 fighters in a dawn attack raided the offices of two associations affiliated with Fatah and an air strip without causing casualties.
The raids were said to be in retaliation to the firing of rockets, further deepening the vicious circle of Mideast violence and counter-violence.
In another development, Al-Quds Brigades and Fatah's military wing, al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades accused Israel of rigging cars and sending them to Gaza as part of its policy to assassinate Palestinian activists.
Two senior field commanders, Khaled Dahdouh of the Quds Brigades, and Abdel Karim Kouka from the Popular Resistance Committees, were recently killed in similar car bombs in Gaza City.
A statement by military experts in the two Palestinian groups said Friday the two assassination operations were very similar insofar as the type of booby-trapped cars, which carried no plates, and the type of equipment used.
"The cars were prepared inside the Zionist entity (Israel) and included sophisticated equipment which only experts and professionals can install in that way," the statement said.
