Israel’s Iron Dome destroys Gaza rocket—security source

Mideast Israel Palestinians

An Israeli soldier walks next to an Iron Dome rocket defense battery near the southern city of Sderot, Israel, Sunday, Sept. 20, 2015. Israel placed an Iron Dome rocket defense battery in the southern town of Sderot, where a rocket launched from Gaza exploded on Friday, damaging a house and a bus. AP Photo

JERUSALEM, Israel—Israel’s “Iron Dome” defense system on Tuesday night intercepted a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, an Israeli security source said.

An alert sounded in the coastal town of Ashdod before the anti-missile system destroyed the rocket.

A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip struck southern Israel last week but did not cause casualties or damage.

There has been no claim of responsibility for the attacks.

Tuesday’s rocket attack came as sporadic clashes between Israeli security forces and Palestinians hit Jerusalem’s Old City and a checkpoint outside Ramallah, with tensions heightened as Jews celebrated the Sukkot holiday.

The incidents followed fresh clashes Monday at Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque compound, where security forces fired stun grenades and tear gas and Palestinians threw stones and petrol bombs while barricading themselves inside the shrine.

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