Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu responded to the possible escalation in Gaza in the opening of the weekly cabinet meeting on Sunday.
"We must preserve quiet in the South. We will do this through the policy of preemptive strikes, and through a powerful response to those trying to hurt us," he said, adding, "I recommend that Hamas take note of this policy."
The PM's comments came after the IAF struck targets in Gaza on Sunday morning, seriously injuring a member of the Islamic Jihad who was involved in last week's rocket launch on Israel.