Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said he will cut short his trip to the United States after a rocket attack injured seven people in Mishmeret, near Tel Aviv.

An Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said the projectile was fired from Gaza, the Palestinian territory controlled by the militant Hamas group, adding that Netanyahu and the Israeli government would respond forcefully.

Netanyahu, who arrived in Washington on Sunday for a four-day visit ahead of an April 9 Israeli election said he would fly home immediately after meeting President Donald Trump at the White House later on Monday.

Netanyahu said his decision to return to Israel was made after he consulted with Israeli military and intelligence chiefs. He had been slated to address AIPAC, the largest US pro-Israel lobby on Tuesday.

The early morning attack on Mishmeret, an agricultural town north of Tel Aviv is coming at a time of high tension ahead of the anniversary of Gaza border protests at the weekend and Trump’s expression of support for Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.

The rocket attack left one house in Mishmeret completely destroyed and at least one other house and cars were left badly damaged.

The country’s amulance service, Magen David Adom said it was currently treating seven people, including an infant, a 3-year-old boy, a 12-year-old girl and a 60-year-old woman who were suffering from blast injuries, burns and shrapnel wounds.

 


Tel Aviv, Israel’s commercial capital and outlying communities had last come under a long-range rocket attack that caused casualties during the 2014 war with Hamas.