Military: rocket fired from Gaza lands on southern Israel

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel says Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired a rocket toward its southern territories. The rocket fell and exploded in an open area Saturday evening, triggering warning sirens in a community to the east of Gaza City. There were no reports of casualties or damage. The Israeli military usually responds to such rocket fire with airstrikes in the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, raising the possibility of further violence just ahead of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The rocket attack comes a day before Israeli and Palestinian officials are set to meet in Egypt in a U.S.-backed effort to defuse violence that has soared especially in the West Bank and east Jerusalem for nearly a year.