The Yesha Council held an emergency meeting in the Gaza
settlementof Kfar Darom amid the continuous attacks on Gush Katif settlements.
Earlier dozens of Kfar Darom residents marched toward a U.N. school building in Gaza’s Dir el-Balah and attempted to set up an outpost on the premises after Palestinians used the structure to open fire at the settlement on Friday morning.
The settlers had already reached the gate separating Kfar Darom and Dir el-Balah when IDF forces intercepted them.
A number of settlers managed to jump over the gate in an attempt to reach the school, but eventually left the area quietly.
Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in response to the continuous mortar shell and Qassam rocket fire by Hamas “This proves once again that a unilateral disengagement under fire and without compensation only encourages terror.”
The Friday morning attack
One terrorist was killed and one injured during an early morning attack on Kfar Darom Friday. No civilian injuries were reported, but the several buildings were damaged.
The attack began at 3:00 AM, when three Palestinians firing a mortar at Kfar Darom, followed by hand gun and rifle fire, and anti-tank missiles at IDF soldiers from a U.N. school near the Dir el-Balah neighborhood in Gaza.
Palestinian police take part
Col. Moti Kadur told Ynet the terrorists could not have made it to the U.N. school without passing a Palestinian Police checkpoint, and said the incident points to active cooperation on the part of the Palestinian police.
Ashher Mivtzari, a spokesman for Kfar Darom, told Ynet the community received a warning in the middle of the night that terrorists would try to hit the community.
“They reached the school about 4:00 a.m., right next to an IDF base. The went up to the roof, and started firing right into the village,” said Mivtzari.
Residents: IDF let terrorists get away
Mivtzari said the army identified the source of fire straight away, but failed to gain approval to return fire from senior officers.
“It took an hour until the tanks received permission to fire back,” he said. “It was enough time for two people to get away.
Mivtzari said it was a miracle no one was hurt in the attack, but that things could easily have ended differently.
Col. Kadur denied Mivtzari's charge, and said soldiers fired back as soon as they identified the source of the attack.
“We have deployed in recent days in and around the town,” he said. “True, we are not undertaking widespread operations at this time, but we are ready to thwart any attempt to harm soldiers or civilians.”
A senior Hamas member said Friday the attack on Kfar Darom was carried out by three different organizations: Hamas, Fatah’s al-Aqsa Brigades and The Popular Resistance Committees.
Diana Bahur-Nir and Hanan Greenberg contributed to this article.
First published: 16:28, 05.20.5