Olmert/Barak are a joke. They refuse to take the action that is really needed! Why wont they target the Hamass leadership? Why are they allowing Israelis to die? The only reason for lack of action is that Olmert doesnt want tof ruin his bogus peace deal? Disgusting!

Replacing the appeasement government of barak/livni/olmert/ramon with a government that puts our security first and looking good to the terrorists DEAD last

Actually, they were probably forced to stand there by those shooting the rockets hoping that they would be hit!

Still the political will is waisting IDF efforts. Air strikes will just mutilate Israeli image around the world. Full taking over of Gaza is the only solution. Don't they realize they're making Hamas stronger everytime they delay invation? That's sad!

The BBC's reporting on the Israel Palestine situation gets worse. Its both overtly anti Israel or in this instance for example lower key not quite reporting the full truth. Hers an example of todays reporting of Israels retaliation of Hamas attacks on Ashkelon and other rocket attacks quoted verbatim 'Israel frequently fires missiles and launches brief land raids into the Gaza Strip, killing at least 14 Palestinians, two of them civilians, in the last two weeks. Palestinian rocket fire has killed two Israeli civilians in the same period' No other qualifications no other contextual comments. Just two paras describing the situation today. Shoddy, dreadful journalism.

So long as Palestinian youth look up to, and stand alongside, militants as they shoot at troops or fire rockets, they're liable to get hit. The IDF has nothing to apologize for.

WE PREFER CHANNEL NEWS ASIA ! BBC LOST CREDIBILITY WHEN THEY EDITED THE PHOTOS DURINGT THE LEB WAR ! BBC HAS NO REPUTATION !

Actually very good journalism. Journalism is mean to be impartial and to convey facts. The above example does just that. Rememeber that Hamas is retaliating to israeli attacks and not the other way round. That is biased opinion and propoganda - as perpetrated by Ynetnews, for example.

Medical sources confirmed that Majd Abu Aukal, a 13-year-old child from the northern Gaza Strip city of Beit Lahiya, was killed instantly after sustaining a rocket shrapnel. The sources said that another resident was also wounded by the same shrapnel. Witnesses in Beit Lahiya said that an Israeli warplane fired at least one missile towards a group of people, killing the child and wounding one man at least. Israeli army announced earlier that an air strike targeted a number of resistance fighters on Gaza-Israel border lines in Beit Lahiya. In the Johr Eldiek village on the central Gaza-Israel border lines , a seperate air strike killed a farmer, witnesses and medics said. Meanwhile, witnesses said that three Israeli tanks, accompanied by a bulldozer, rolled earlier on Tuesday dawn into the central Gaza Strip refugee camp of Maghazi, under a barrage of heavy gunfire. The witnesses added that the bulldozer began razing Palestinian-owned farm lands just close to the border fence with Israel, to the east of the camp.

what the "other resident" was doing at the time?

Israeli tanks killed a Palestinian farmer in the town of Beit Lahiya, in the northern Gaza Strip. Palestinian medical sources identified the farmer as 32-year-old Ali Ad-Dahdouh. His son was critically injured by a gunshot wound to the head. Muawiya Hassanain, the director of ambulance and emergency services in the Palestinian Health Ministry said that medics evacuated Dahdouh's burnt, ragged corpse to Ash-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. Another civilian was moderately injured as Israeli warplanes fired a missile at the area of Juhor Ad-Dik in the central Gaza Strip. On Tuesday morning, a 13-year-old child was killed in an Israeli air strike in Beit Lahiya, One other person was injured in that attack. Palestinian medical sources said that the corpse of the child, whose name has not yet been determined, was transferred to Kamal Udwan Hospital in northern Gaza. Witnesses said that an Israeli aircraft fired a missile at a group of Palestinian civilians gathered in Beit Lahiya. The Israeli air force maintains that it fired at a group of fighters. Separately, witnesses said that three Israeli tanks and a bulldozer invaded the eastern edge of Maghazi refugee camp, destroying land and shooting intensely. Witnesses said that the Israeli soldiers at the checkpoint prevented an ambulance to evacuate him to hospital; instead they closed the checkpoint and hurled gas and sonic grenades towards the citizens.

Sorry, you're the one who's got it completely backwards. Hamas has been using Gaza as a launching pad to rain rockets down on southern Israel ever since all the Israelis were evacuated from the territory. The only reason for the IDF operations is to try to put an end to this criminal behavior on the part of Hamas. Not only that, but no other country would live with this situation the way the Israelis have. In fact, I can almost guarantee you that if American civilians had been under constant attack from Canada or Mexico, neither one of those countries would be inhabitable right now.

You obviously seem to think Hamas is doing a good job at protecting their citizens Can you please explain the reason behind launching random ineffective rockets every day for 7 years at a population, creating a body count of 100-1 in each conflict, during cease fires or not. Causing the world to disown you put a blockade on the only small piece of land you control completely I mean lets forget about the moral issue for a second who's right and wrong, and just think about whats smart. Or even forget smart a humane strategy. Why keep it going, when Gaza could be a middle eastern Singapore, instead of a huge prison. Why not say, hey we lost (back in 48 and every other conflict after that) each time we fight we lose more. Lets renounce violence accept Israels right to exist. Take away any excuse for Israel to fire upon you. Start using the billions of dollars worth of aid that you recieve from all over the world for the good of the population. Declare the independence of Hamastan if you don't want Fatah in on it, and voila you've got yourself a country It hasn't been tried before maybe you can convince your friends from Hamas to give it a shot.

Hamas frequently fires missiles and attempts brief land raids into the Israel, killing 2 Israelis, all of them civilians, in the last two weeks. Israeli rocket fire has killed 12 Palestinian militants and two civilians in the same period.

first it was Gaza was occupied and now it is "retaliation", even though the Palestinians ALWAYS fire first( maybe clairvoyant "retaliation" ).

Here you go again - all the big macho talk - neither of these countries would be habitable by now - if they dared to mess with the US of A But hold on - where's Bin laden ? he aint caught yet. And those pesky Iraqis are still fighting and killing the 'brave' marines. And let's not even mention those little men in pyjamas and straw hats in Vietnam. Couldn't make Vietnam uninhabitable could ya? Big old US of A had to run away in the end. (as it will in Iraq) Stop the big macho vengeance talk. It's silly. Sly Stallone you aint. And yes Palestinians are firing homemade fireworks into israel. But have you ever wondered what israel is firing into Gaza and the West bank? Much, much worse than little old home made fireworks.

To #8: Perfect example of biased journalism. Any impartial journalist would write something like that: ‘Palistinian-run terrorist-controlled semi-state formation of Gaza frequently fires missiles into Israeli civilian areas’. To #13: Very good analysis. Too bad that it’s a response to some muslim illiterate jerk hiding behind European nickname. In Russia we used to say that talking to these folks is just like to cast pearls before swine.

Why not say, hey we lost (back in 48 and every other conflict after that) each time we fight we lose more. Lets renounce violence accept Israels right to exist. Take away any excuse for Israel to fire upon you. Well, of course the Palestinians have not lost completely or they wouldn't be there. They are still resisting occupation despite the odds been stacked against them. Their bravery and fortitude is quite astonishing. And, of course, Isreal does not need any excuse to kill Palestinians. Israel has been doing just that for over sixty years - long before Hamas and the PLO were founded. These two groups were founded as resistance movements. They were born out of occupation.

"Rememeber that Hamas is retaliating to israeli attacks and not the other way round." What evidence do you have to support this claim? Let's see you chronicle the hundreds of kassam attacks since the beginning of the year to document they were prompted by Israeli attacks. Are you by any chance confused because you depend on news that is biased and less than accurate?

It has been a long time since i last saw such moronic postings...Hamas is retaliating??? Home made fireworks???What have you been smoking???An IQ reduction pipe???

'kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit'. How can a soldier be kidnapped? A soldier is captured. part of a soldier's assessment when taking on the job is the possibility of being killed or captured. A soldier cannot be kidnapped! Rommel kidnapped 100 British soldiers. It sounds stooopid. But then the British army (not to mention the Afrika Korps) were real soldiers and honourable men.

But where is your evidence to support the claim that Palestinians are 'terrorist'? What is your source? The whole point I am making is that impartial news does not use terms like 'terrorist' to label one side and not the other. Why? Because, put in simple terms, the Palestinians are not terrorists to the majority of world opinion. The facts are that Israel kills / murders / terrorises many, many more people that the Palestinians do. For that simple reason it is inaccuarate to label the Palestinians as 'terrosist' as if they are some homogonised group with no other motive than to 'terrorise' and the Israelis are simply innocent victims. The facts disprove that scenario conclusively. Israel has appropriated Palestinian land and expelled and killed and built WALLS and road blocks and yet, and yet blames the Palestinians and, even more perversely, claims that the Palestinians brought it upon themselves. Just as the nazis used to do to their victims. Claim that their suffering was self inflicted. Most news is biased - you only have to look at this site for a crystal example. The BBC is more impartial than probably any other news agency in the world. Which is why BBC World is the most listened / watched news service on the planet.

Talking and reasoning with Jane is useless and self demeaning. Her stance is ideological and has nothing to do with the facts the way they are. Jane couldn't care less about those facts. It all boils down to which side you are really one. Just like with the infamous Rachel Corrie, the so-called "peace" activist. Ideological commissars should not be confronted with reason. Any discussion with them should be avoided.

Its a bad day when only 4 terroits are killed the body count should be and must be for every rocket fired into Israel at least 500 dead. This is the only way these people will learn that there is a price to pay. IDF lets begin to teach these people a leson they wont forget.

You know what I think would be a fair solution to your "fireworks" assumption? let's have israel shoot the exact same rockets at the exact same frequency back at gaza residents and see how the world reacts to that. These rockets do not have a military target, they are randomly fired at CIVILIAN populations at the hope of killing or injuring as many women and children as possible. Every time they kill an old woman (like last week) and get a direct hit and injure dozens of innocent women and children (like the mall hit in ashkelon) these terrorist empathizers come out and celebrate. Meanwhile Israel inadvertantly kills a civilian when trying to strike these militants and they are chastised everywhere! Jane, if you want to seem even remotely credible please put together a coherent argument to support suicide bombers, or the guy who went into an israeli synagogue in jerusalem and killed scores of innocent youth, or the purposefull aiming of rockets into civilian areas? I gaurantee you will not respond to this since your goal is not to make sense, but rather to confuse and distort the truth.