Rocket warning sirens sound in Israel during White House ceremony

Sirens warning of rocket fire from Gaza sounded in southern Israel on Tuesday as a ceremony was under way in Washington for the signing of agreements normalising relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.

The Israeli military said the alert was sounded in the coastal cities of Ashkelon and Ashdod. Israel's Channel 12 TV said two people were wounded by rocket fragments at a shopping mall in Ashdod.

In Gaza, which is controlled by the Islamist Hamas militant group, dozens of Palestinians rallied outside a U.N. office to condemn normalisation with Israel, shortly before the signing ceremony began at the White House. "Palestine isn't for sale," protesters chanted.