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Feb. 23 (UPI) -- Israel and Gaza exchanged rocket fire on Sunday after Israeli soldiers shot two Palestinians on the Gaza border. Israeli Defense Forces on Sunday announced they have begun striking "Islamic jihad" targets in both Gaza and Syria in retaliation to Gaza firing more than 20 rockets into Israel earlier in the day.
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IDF wrote on Twitter that approximately 10 of the rockets were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system and shared a map of locations in Israel that came under fire.
"Terror targets civilians. Israel targets terror," the IDF said.
The missile launch came after the IDF announced that Israeli soldiers opened fire on two Palestinians who it said had made multiple attempts to place an explosive charge next to a border fence on the southern Gaza Strip on Sunday.
Gaza's health ministry said the two men were taken to Kan Yunis's European hospital for treatment. One of the men, identified as 27-year-old Muhammad Ali Anam died.
A video that circulated on social media on Sunday showed a bulldozer escorted by a tank driving toward a group of Palestinians and picking up the two men before driving them away. Israeli Defense Minister Naftali Bennett confirmed a bulldozer was sent to collect the bodies.
Hamas representative Fawzi Barhoum said that Israel "intended to kill an unarmed young man, in front of the cameras of the whole world" as its soldiers opened fire.
"The enemy forces' infiltration into the territory of the Strip and savagely insulting one of our fighters constitute blatant aggression and Israel must bear responsibility for this aggression," said Barhoum.
