Israel strikes Gaza for the second time in two days after Palestinian violence

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel says it has unleashed airstrikes targeting a militant site in Gaza for the second time in as many days. It came after Palestinian militants sent incendiary balloons into Israeli farmland and Palestinian protesters threw stones and explosives at soldiers at the separation fence. There were no reported casualties from the strikes in Gaza on Saturday. It was the latest in a series of violent protests over the past week that has raised the specter of an escalation for the first time since a brief round of conflict last May between Israel and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad militant group. It comes at a fraught time just before the Sukkot festival in Israel next week.