Izz ad Din al Qassam Brigades commander, Muhammad Deif, on Saturday announced start of Operation "Al-Aqsa Flood," in response to Israel's crimes against the Palestinians and its repeated incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque.

In a recorded speech aired today, he said: "The first strike of the operation aimed to launch 5,000 missiles."

Deif added that the operation came in response on Israeli massacres against Palestinian civilians, noting "al-Qassam" leadership has decided to put an end to all the Israeli crimes.

On Saturday morning, Palestinian resistance factions launched intense missile barrages from Gaza Strip towards Israel, in addition to land and sea infiltration attempts, while sirens sounded in multiple areas, including south of Tel Aviv, Ashdod and Ashkelon.