[Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: While the Israel Foreign Ministry describes in
the following document the terrible situation since the retreat from the
Gaza Strip this in no way is having an impact on the activities of FM Livni.
Instead of coming to grips with the fact that she and her fellow travelers
have been advocating destructively dangerous policies reflecting both an
incredibly short planning horizon ("let's forget about tomorrow" could be
their theme song) and a cavalier attitude about security she is now pressing
for a rush to create a sovereign Palestinian state based on a series of
arrangements that could generously be termed a house of cards.
When a dog is hit by a car crossing the street it is careful the next time.
But these are human beings. Not canines.]
---------------------------
FM - Behind the Headlines: The Threat to Israeli Civilians from the Gaza
Strip
Israel Foreign Ministry 21 November 2006
Link:
www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Terrorism+and+Islamic+Fundamentalism-/Behind+the+headlines+--+The+Threat+to+Israeli+Civilians+from+the+Gaza+Strip+21-Nov-2006.htm
Since Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip in the summer of 2005,
Palestinian terrorist organizations based there have increased their rocket
attacks on Israeli communities in the Western Negev, firing more than 1,000
Kassam rockets at Israeli civilians. In addition, the terrorists have
stepped up their arms smuggling operations via tunnels in the southern Gaza
Strip, bringing in more than 30 tons of high explosives.
Kassam Rockets
Between Israel's disengagement from Gaza last August and November 15, 2006,
1,201 Kassam artillery rockets have hit Israeli population centers adjacent
to the Gaza Strip. These rockets include improved, long-range weapons which
can reach the Israeli port city of Ashkelon, more than 13 km. (8 miles) from
the Gaza border. So far seven Israelis, one foreign worker, and two
Palestinian civilians have been killed in Palestinian rocket attacks from
Gaza, and more than 100 persons have been wounded.
Arms Buildup
Israel Security Agency Director Yuval Diskin, in a briefing to the Knesset
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on 14 November, noted the following
quantities of arms smuggled by terrorist groups into the Gaza Strip since
the Disengagement:
* 33 tons of military-grade high explosives
* 20,000 assault rifles
* 3,000 Pistols
* 6,000,000 rounds of small arms ammunition
* 38 long-range Kassam missiles
* 12 shoulder-fired, anti-aircraft guided missiles
* 95 anti-tank rocket launchers
* 410 anti-tank rockets
* 20 precision-guided Anti-Tank Missiles
In addition, between $50 million-$70m. in cash has been smuggled into Gaza
in order to finance the Hamas terrorist operations.
Terrorist Attacks and Suicide Bombings
The Palestinian terrorist groups in Gaza have lately intensified their
attempts to carry out large-scale attacks against Israeli population
centers. One tactic recently used is to exploit Israel's humanitarianism by
infiltrating terrorists pretending to be Palestinians entering Israel to
receive medical treatment. In one such case, on March 7, 2006, Samih Haddad
, 21, a resident of Zeitun in the Gaza Strip, was arrested at the Erez
crossing while trying to enter Israel using counterfeit medical documents
for medical treatment at an Israeli clinic. During questioning he admitted
that he had been recruited by the Islamic Jihad, which provided him with the
false medical documents and instructed him to infiltrate into Israel, where
he would receive an automatic weapon in order to carry out an attack.
Another tactic being used is the exploitation of the peaceful border between
Israel and Egypt in the Sinai in order to infiltrate terrorists from Gaza
into Israel for suicide attacks. For example, on February 8, 2006, two
Islamic Jihad terrorists from the Gaza Strip were arrested in the Negev. One
was a 17-year-old would-be suicide bomber wearing an explosive vest; and
other was his escort. They had infiltrated Israel via the Sinai in order to
carry out a suicide bombing against Israeli civilians in Jerusalem.
In another thwarted infiltration, on June 11, 2006, two Palestinian
terrorists from Gaza were caught as they were attempting to cross the
Israeli-Egyptian border south of Gaza. One terrorist, Ibrahim Majdoub, had
been dispatched by the Popular Resistance Committee (PRC) to murder Israeli
soldiers near Tel Aviv, hide their bodies in an orchard, and then fax their
documents to the PRC in Gaza so it could claim they were abducted and
negotiate concessions. The other terrorist, Muhammed Assan, was to carry out
a suicide gun-and-grenade attack in an Israeli city.
Exploitation of Civilians
In addition to their cynical tactic of using Palestinian civilians as human
shields by firing rockets from densely populated areas, Palestinian
terrorists are now increasingly mobilizing civilians in order to protect
themselves from Israeli counterterrorist operations. In one recent example,
on November 3, 2006, a group of terrorists was discovered hiding in the
revered al-Nasr Mosque in Beit Hanoun. When Israeli troops surrounded the
mosque and called upon the terrorists to surrender, they were met with
gunfire. Soon, a procession of about 200 Muslim women, veiled and wearing
traditional dress, arrived at the mosque, having been summoned by the
terrorists inside. The terrorists then escaped by mingling with the women,
some of them even donning women's clothing.
Another such event occurred on November 18, minutes after the IDF warned
residents of Beit Lahiya that a counterterrorist strike was about to be
carried out against the home of Muhammad Baroud, commander of the PRC's
Kassam rocket operations. The IDF issued the warning to prevent civilian
casualties during the impending operation. Baroud quickly summoned hundreds
of Palestinians, including women and children, and had them surround the
building. The IDF counterterrorist operation had to be cancelled due to the
proximity of the civilians - demonstrating vividly that the Palestinians
know that Israel values their lives more than the Palestinian terrorists do.
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