Oct
30
Written by:
Dr. Ernie Moore
Sunday, October 30, 2011
With the release of 500 prisoners to the Egyptians, Islamic Jihad fired over 20 rockets into southern Israel One of those hit Ashkelon and killed the father of four, Moshe Ami, 56, killed by shrapnel.
Others hit Be'er Sheva, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Gan Yavneh, Sderot and the communities adjacent to the Gaza Strip. Grad hits near home in Ashdod. IDF kills ten Islamic Jihad militants.
You can see the result of another rocket here as three cars were torched when his.
CLASSES CANCELLED IN BE'ER SHEVA, ASHDOD AND ASHKELON
Though the schools in the area are faced with hardened concrete like that in the photo above. This concrete is the same used in military bunkers and will detonate the rockets before they can pierce the building and do more damage.
And there is also the much praised Iron Dome anti-rocket system apparently failed to stop some of the rockets from Gaza.
Here’s the J-Post report on that:
IDF Spokesman Brig.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai addressed the failure of one of the Iron Dome batteries to intercept rockets over Ashdod. The IDF spokesman described the failure as a "technical failure." The error has reportedly been repaired. The system did reportedly intercept Grads fired at Beersheba.
Two rockets fired toward Gan Yavne were successfully intercepted Sunday morning.
Addressing the situation in the south, Mordechai said, "Hamas is the ruling element in Gaza, but at this stage it has remained passive."
"Through various ways, direct and indirect, we are checking to see how it is working to stop the escalation," Mordechai added.
"As of now, Islamic Jihad absorbed a painful blow from the IDF's response. It has been hit and it is feeling under pressure. Until now, they have had ten [members] killed, including Sheikh Ahmed Khalil, a member of Islamic Jihad's supreme military council. They also have a number of injured," he said.
However, the length of the current escalation was unknown, and it could last 24 hours or longer, Mordechai said. "If a number of dead is suffered by one of the sides, the round could extend beyond the middle of next week," he warned. "The current situation has no effect on the Gilad Shalit trade with Hamas," Mordechai added.
According to Egyptian officials, however, Israel and Palestinian factions in Gaza had agreed upon a ceasefire, set to begin at 6 a.m. on Sunday.
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu speaking Saturday night with the mayors of Ashkelon, Ashdod and Beersheba, promised that "the IDF's harsh response, that hit three rocket launcher cells on Saturday, will be even harsher if necessary."
He also requested that the mayors transmit to the residents of the South, his appreciation of their steadfastness in light of the rocket fire from Gaza.
HAMAS PASSIVE
Interestingly, the rulers of Gaza did not participate in the rocketing firing. They remained on the sideline even though the IDF sent jets into the air over Gaza and indeed killed four terrorists firing rockets, including one of the Islamic Jihad commanders. Afterward, IJ said they would honor the truce.