Barrages of rockets were fired from the blockaded Gaza Strip on Saturday, killing 70 people in Israel and at least 198 in Gaza.
Sirens blared across the country’s south and central areas, with Israel authorities urging people to stay near bomb shelters.
The armed wing of the Palestinian terror group Hamas said it was behind the attack, claiming that it launched over 5,000 rockets at its neighbour.
“We decided to put an end to all the crimes of the occupation (Israel), their time for rampaging without being held accountable is over,” the group said.
“We announce Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and we fired, in the first strike of 20 minutes, more than 5,000 rockets.”