Posted on 11/03/2006 2:19:04 AM PST by HAL9000
Excerpt -
A 19-hour standoff between Israel Defense Forces troops and Palestinian gunmen holed up inside a mosque in the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanun ended Friday morning after all the gunmen fled, the IDF and Palestinians said.The militants inside the mosque escaped under cover of a protest by Palestinian women outside, the IDF said.
~ snip ~
(Excerpt) Read more at haaretz.com ...
>>>escaped under cover of a protest by Palestinian women outside
Note, willing human shields. Not simply innocent bystanders seized upon by cowards.
Sometimes its hard to be a woman
Giving all your love to just one man
You'll have bad times
And he'll have good times
Doing things that you don't understand
But if you love him you'll forgive him
Even though he's hard to understand
And if you love him
Oh be proud of him
'Cause after all he's just a man
Stand by your man
Give him two arms to cling to
And something warm to come to
When nights are cold and lonely
Stand by your man
And tell the world you love him
Keep giving all the love you can
Stand by your man
Stand by your man
And show the world you love him
Keep giving all the love you can
Stand by your man
The US State Dept must be ectastic that more innocent deaths are coming by the State-dept-supplied weapons.
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20061103/gaza_standoff_061103/20061103?hub=TopStories
19-hour Gaza standoff ends with civilian's death
Updated Fri. Nov. 3 2006 7:36 AM ET
CTV.ca News Staff
A 19-hour Gaza standoff ended Friday when Israeli forces opened fire on a group of women acting as human shields to protect Hamas militants.
One woman was killed and 10 more were wounded according to Palestinian officials and witnesses who were on the scene.
The women were attempting to protect Palestinian gunmen who were hiding out in a Gaza mosque. Several hundred women came to the mosque after militants asked women to form a ring around the mosque in Beit Hanoun, a northern Gaza town.
The chaos caused by the women's presence allowed the militants to escape, ending the standoff, according to The Associated Press.
Between one dozen and three dozen gunmen holed-up in the mosque on Thursday, reportedly seeking refuge from Israeli troops. The militants were thought to be armed members of ruling Hamas party's military wing.
Israeli forces cracked down on Beit Hanoun on Thursday, with helicopters, tanks and ground forces moving in in an attempt to stop the barrage of rockets being fired from there into Israel.
More than 20 Palestinians have been killed since Israel resumed its offensive in Gaza. Most were gunmen.
Israeli troops bombarded with mosque with stun and smoke grenades, and bulldozed an outer wall of the mosque in an attempt to force the gunmen to surrender.
As the standoff continued, Hamas radio issued a call for women to shield the militants. Dozens responded, and came under Israeli fire as they attempted to form a ring around the mosque, according to witnesses and officials.
The dead woman was about 40 years old.
The Israeli army said they fired into the crowd after noticing two militants hiding among the women.
However, the large crowd that had gathered by mid-morning Friday helped the militants to escape, because there weren't enough ground troops to keep the protesters away from the building, the military said.
Later in the day, two protests erupted, with demonstrators reportedly firing at Israeli soldiers, rounding out two days of fierce fighting.
Around the town, Israeli forces lowered their profile. Soldiers stopped patrolling the streets, though snipers were still perched on rooftops and tanks were still in position on the streets.
Despite the crackdown on Beit Hanoun, rockets have continued to land in Israel. Two Israelis were slightly injured in southern Israel on Friday when two rockets struck the region.
Israel said the Beit Hanoun operations don't indicate a wider offensive into Gaza. The incursion was launched as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, a moderate, tried to form a new government with Hamas.
Abbas will seek new elections if talks do not produce results in about two weeks, according to reports.
Meanwhile, former Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon was put into intensive care after his overall condition and heart function deteriorated on Friday.
Sharon suffered a stroke in January and has been in a coma ever since.
High Volume. Articles on Israel can also be found by clicking on the Topic or Keyword Israel. or WOT [War on Terror]
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From the JPost:
The IDF said on Friday that they suspected that Palestinian gunmen had dressed up as women in order to foil the army's attempts to gain access to the mosque in Gaza where Palestinian operatives were holed up inside.
Hamas radio station in Gaza broadcast a call to northern Gaza women to go to the mosque to serve as human shields for the operatives inside.
A 19-hour standoff between IDF troops and the operatives ended Friday morning after all the operatives fled.
IDF soldiers surrounded the mosque in the northeast Gaza Strip town of Beit Hanun and exchanged fire with the dozens of Palestinians who were inside.
That was the moment to stop kidding with stunt and smoke grenades and to erase not just the outer wall but the whole Devil's Shrine. Together with the witches.
Those women are as good as terrorists. Israel had every right to kill them.
Nuff Said!!
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