GAZA, May 31 (UPI) -- Palestinian gunmen fired rockets at Israel as Israeli forces arrested nine Palestinians, fueling the cycle of Mideast violence.
Islamic Jihad's Quds Brigades said it fired several more sophisticated rockets at the Israeli city of Sederot Wednesday hitting an apartment building adjacent to the house of Defense Minister Amir Peretz.
A Jihad statement said "early Wednesday, a brigade from the mujahideen (holy Muslim warriors) succeeded in hitting the residential area of the occupied city of Sederot with modern medium range Quds rockets.
"The attack is aimed at defying the enemy's security measures and is part of the resistance retaliation to the cowardly killing of great leader Mahmoud Majzoub and his brother Nidal a few days ago in the city of Sidon in south Lebanon," the statement added.
Majzoub, an Islamic Jihad official in Lebanon, and his brother were killed in a car bomb in Lebanon last week. Islamic Jihad accused Israeli agents of orchestrating his death.
Israel said four rockets were fired at Sederot, one of which hit a residential building, while the rest landed in plains outside the city.
Israeli media reported no casualties, but said two of the building's residents were hit by panic attacks.
It said Peretz visited his neighbor and promised that Israel will not stop dealing painful blows to the gunmen targeting it with rockets.
In another development, Israeli forces arrested nine Palestinians, including two women, in the West Bank camp of Balata and in the city of Kabatiya.
The Palestinian News Agency, WAFA, said a large force made an incursion into Balata early morning Wednesday, conducting house to house searches which ended with the arrest of six people.
In Kabatiya, south of Jenin, Israeli troops moved into the town under heavy gunfire and searched houses, arresting three people.
