Rocket sirens wail in Israel after 2 Palestinian teens were killed

Rocket sirens wailed in Israeli communities along the Gaza border late Friday after a series of deadly clashes along the border.

The sirens went off in the town of Sderot and the communities of Ibim and Kibbutz Or Haner. The IDF said it was investigating.

The reports come hours after two Palestinian teens were reportedly killed in clashes with Israeli troops along the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel, in what the IDF called “especially violent” riots.

The Hamas-run health ministry identified one of those killed as 17-year-old Ali al-Ashqar. It said he was shot in the neck in northern Gaza Strip. A second teenager was shot in the stomach east of Gaza City, the ministry said, later identifying him as Khaled al-Rabaee, 14.

The IDF had no immediate comment on the deaths but said some 6,200 Palestinians took part in the weekly “March of Return,” including hundreds that rioted.

The riots were especially violent and included the throwing of a large number of explosive devices, hand grenades and firebombs at the fence and IDF soldier,” the army said, adding that there were extensive attempts to damage the border barrier.

During the clashes Israeli soldiers arrested two Palestinians who tried to enter Israel from northern Gaza, the IDF said.

The suspects were not armed and following their arrest were taken in for further questioning, the army said.

A spokesman for Hamas, the terror group that rules Gaza, blamed Israel for the Palestinians’ deaths and warned of a possible response.

“Israel will bear the consequences for this crime,” the Kan public broadcaster quoted Hazem Qassem saying.