Red alert sirens blare across southern Israel following deaths of IDF Colonel, Hamas terrorist leader. 1 hurt in mortar attack.

A bus on the Israeli side of the border was struck by gunfire from the Gaza Strip Monday afternoon, the IDF stated.

The bus was reportedly empty at the time of the attack.

In addition, red alert sirens sounded across southern Israel as dozens of rockets were fired at Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip. Sirens have been heard in Sderot, Netivot, the Be'er Sheva area, and the Sdot Negev, Ashkelon Beach, Shaar Hanegev and Eshkol councils.

The IDF has identified about 200 rocket launches from the Gaza Strip. A number of rockets were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system.

Sirens were reported as far east as the Judean desert and the Dead Sea area.

A 19-year-old man was seriously wounded in a mortar attack on an Israeli community in the Gaza periphery. United Hatzalah reported that ten people have been treated for injuries received from rocket shrapnel and for shock.

Gaza officials have reported that the IDF struck a Hamas observation post in the northern Gaza Strip Monday afternoon. No casualties were reported in the strike on the observation post.

The violence follows a skirmish Sunday in which seven Hamas terrorists were killed, including Nur Barakeh, commander of the eastern battalion of Hamas’ Izz Al-Din Al-Qassam Brigades in Khan Yunis. An IDF Lieutenant Colonel was also killed in the gunfight.

The Hamas terrorist organization has claimed responsibility for the rocket barrage.

The Prime Minister's Office stated that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu is currently conducting security consultations with the Minister of Defense, the Chief of Staff and senior members of the defense establishment and the IDF at the Krya, the IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv.