JNS.org – The Israel Defense Forces released a report on Sunday summarizing Israel’s military activity in 2019.
According to the report, terrorist acts declined in 2019, while rocket fire at Israeli population centers rose. 1,295 rockets were launched from Gaza, with 729 landing in open areas and 478 being intercepted by the Iron Dome air defense system, according to the report. About 85 percent of the rockets targeted population centers.
The tally was the highest in a single year since 2014, when Israel fought its third war against Hamas terrorists in Gaza.
Terror attacks stood at 51 — approximately one per week — in 2019, down from 76 in 2018.
The Israel Air Force carried out over 1,800 combat deployments and over 40,000 flight hours with unmanned aerial vehicles in one of its busiest years in the past decade, also taking part in 213 rescue missions which evacuated 158 wounded people, primarily civilians.
The report also showed that the IDF thwarted hundreds of cyber-attacks against Israel over the course of the year, including the first by Hamas.