At least two Grad rockets fired by Palestinian combatants in Gaza on Thursday slammed into the port city of Ashdod and just north of it, police and the Israeli army said.

Medics said no one was injured in the strikes, which came a day after Gaza's Hamas rulers vowed to rein in recalcitrant combatant groups who had vowed to hit ever-deeper into Israel.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld confirmed that two Grad rockets had landed in Israel, saying: "One landed in the city and the other landed north of the city."
An army spokeswoman confirmed two Grads had hit Ashdod.

Earlier, security sources had told AFP one of the rockets landed in an area "just south of Rishon-le-Tzion" -- which is significantly further north, in an area around 15 kilometres (nine miles) from Tel Aviv.

Officials in the area had "heard a loud blast" but it later transpired the blast was not caused by the second rocket, which had landed just north of Ashdod.

The rocket fire came a day after Islamic Jihad's military wing, the Al Quds Brigades, fired three Grads at Beersheva and Ashdod and vowed to fire more at cities deep inside the Jewish state as it entered "a new phase" of resistance.

"The Al Quds Brigade has entered a new phase of bombing targets which are further away, where thousands of Israelis live," group spokesman Abu Ahmad told AFP.

Ashdod lies about 30 kilometres (18 miles) up the coast from Gaza, while Rishon-Le-Tzion is located another 25 kilometres (15 miles) further north.

Grad rockets are understood to have a range of up to 50 kilometres.