While media attention focuses on northern front, Qassams continue to land Sunday in Ashkelon, Sderot. IDF official Conflict in north encourages Hamas
Shmulik Hadad
No remission of rockets in the southern front: Within one hour on Sunday five Qassam rockets landed in Sderot and Ashkelon. Overall eight Qassam rockets landed in Sderot and Ashkelon. One of the rockets landed near a strategic facility in Ashkelon, miraculously failing to hit the structure.
Two other rockets landed in open fields in Karmiya and Mavki'im. Later Sderot was hit by three Qassams, one landing in a babies' clinic,
which caused some people to suffer anxiety. Another rocket dud landed in a park and third by officials' estimates landed in a Palestinian territory, near the border.
Earlier on Sunday two other rockets landed near Shaar Hanegve Regional Council and another one near kibbutz Nahal Oz. In some communities the residents were asked to go into shelters. On Sunday morning two Qassam rockets landed in Sderot, one landed in a school and other in near synagogue.
Sderot residents are following closely the escalation in the north and ask repeatedly not to forget that fighting for Sderot has also claimed lives. "We know that the fighting in the north is very difficult and our hearts go out for them, but also here the Qassams continue and it's only a miracle that no one was hurt," said a resident of Zikim.
Community leaders continue their efforts for reinforcement of schools and other educational facilities and fear that because of the situation in the north, the reinforcement of constructions will be halted. "They should remember that we have been suffering this situation for five years," said an official in the area.
Lately the Red Dawn alert system has been working intermittently, and this morning for example it was not activated. IDF officials explained that the system is undergoing an upgrade and its name will be officially renamed to Color Red.
IDF operating in the south
Meanwhile the operation in the Gaza Strip continues. The IDF reported that in the past week some 90 terrorists have been killed. On Sunday afternoon Palestinians fired an antitank missile on IDF Armored forces operating in areas in Beit Hanun, in the northern Strip. There were no reports on injuries or damage.
Also on Sunday morning the IAF attacked two gunmen cells and blasted a tunnel in southern Strip. A vehicle carrying terrorists on their way to fire Qassam rockets was also hit. "The fighting is ongoing around the clock simultaneously here and in the north," an official in the Southern Command told Ynet. "We are following up on events unfolding in the other front, but we are concentrating our attention on Gaza. We intend on continuing 'Summer Rain' and attack terror infrastructure."
IDF officials said that there is certain decrease in the number of Qassam fired on Israel as a result of the operations carried out in the past two weeks. "They still fire Qassams, partly because of their participation in the overall escalation and keeping the southern front in the news," said a senior officer. We must remember that the Hamas does not need any excuses in order to carry out terror acts or fire Qassams, but the conflict in the north only encourages them."
Chief of Staff Dan Halutz said during today's situation analysis meeting that the forces will continue operating against the Qassams and to push for the return of the abducted soldier Gilad Shalit.
A Palestinian Hamas police officer (L) fires in the air to push away onlookers amidst the rubble of a destroyed house after an Israeli aircraft shelled a house in Gaza City. Three Palestinians were killed as Israeli armor swept back into the northern Gaza town of Beit Hanun, pressing on with an offensive to stop rocket attacks and retrieve a missing soldier.(AFP/Thomas Coex)
Palestinian Hamas police fire in the air to push away onlookers after an Israeli aircraft shelled a house in Gaza City. An Israeli soldier captured by Palestinian militants three weeks ago and being held in Gaza is still alive, head of the Shin Beth internal security service Yuval Diskin has said.(AFP/Thomas Coex)
