JERUSALEM?- The Israeli air force (IAF) struck militant targets in the Gaza Strip overnight in retaliation for a rocket attack on southern Israel from the coastal enclave Thursday evening, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said.

"In response to rocket fire toward Israel, an IAF aircraft targeted a terror infrastructure site in the central Gaza Strip and three concealed rocket launchers in northern Gaza Strip," the IDF said in a statement sent to Xinhua.

It said pilots reported direct hits of the targets

The strike came hours after a rocket fired from Gaza landed in Israel near the Gaza border fence.

The projectile explode in an open area, causing no injuries or damage.

The Israeli army noted it was the first rocket fired at Israel from Gaza in 2014 and a total of 36 rockets were fired into Israel in 2013 from that territory.