‘Rockets to threaten Tel Aviv’

GAZA - Palestinians terrorists have already installed the necessary infrastructure to transfer the Qassam rockets to the West Bank from Gaza, according to Abu Abir, spokesman for the Gaza-based Popular Resistance Committees terror group.

In an interview with Ynet, Abu Abir said that Gaza’s new border would turn into an additional “blue line,” modeled on the border separating Israel and Lebanon.

“It will be like the Hizbullah: Every Israeli transgression of this line or movement of forces towards it will give us the right to respond against the act of aggression,” threatened Abu Abir.

The Palestinian Authority is doing everything to ensure a quiet withdrawal. Will you help their efforts?

“We will do everything so that this defeatist withdrawal, this escape, will be carried out quietly and successfully. We in the resistance committee, along with other factions, caused this escape. But it's important to emphasize that Israel is leaving Gaza as a large prison, while double the fence around it and requesting to control all the entrances and exits of the Strip.”

It’s natural that Israel would strengthen the Gaza border and mark it with a fence after its withdrawal.

“We will relate to the fence like Hizbullah relates to the blue line in Lebanon. That means that if the fence is a border, we will mark it as a dangerous zone, as the area between the blue line and the Sheba farms is marked. If Israel sends forces close to the dangerous zone on the bodrer area, either in the form of ground troops, or armored vehicles, in order to harm the joy and quiet of the Palestinian people – we will respond with full force.”

Sderot residents protest Qassam attacks on their town (Photo: Gadi Kablo)

You’re already talking about full force, while the PA is demanding restraint from the Palestinian factions.

“After the defeatist withdrawal is completed, after the last settler and soldier withdraw, we won’t do anything from Gaza. But we won’t allow Israel to violate the Gaza border. Such a violation will obligate us to respond.”

It seems from your statements that the message to the PA is that you will want a piece of the cake on the day after the withdrawal.

“That’s right. We in the resistance have defended our people, we did this. We did it because there was an occupation and the Palestinian Authority couldn’t do it. Therefore we are now demanding to be part of the collective management of the Strip. We made this demand of the Authority and Abu Mazen when we meet with them, and we asked this of them also via the Egyptians, so that the Authority agrees to set up a higher body to run the withdrawal and whatever will follow it. No one has the rights held by the resistance over this withdrawal. The resistance is the owner of this enormous gain. The Israeli withdrawal is only a result of resistance operations, first and foremost of which are the (Qassam) rockets.”

But the rockets and Israeli responses to them have only caused enormous damage to the Palestinian population and just last week, a group of residents from northern Gaza asked the Palestinian Authority in a letter to stop the rockets.

“I’ll tell you what stands behind that letter. It is, first of all, a tactic by the Palestinian Interior Ministry, that is trying to say that the rockets are a failure and they don’t help anything, that they only cause damage. This is the official line of the Authority and Abu Mazen also says so, and many interests sand behind it. Second of all, the letter is trying to say that if the Qassam rockets caused damage, then they did not cause Israel’s withdrawal and the faction’s demands should not be accepted. Therefore we see this letter as part of a political struggle and it does not influence our own struggle.

"These rockets were the ones that dragged Sharon, Mofaz, and all the army chiefs to have to explain themselves to Sderot residents time and time again. We recognize that there mistakes in our work, and who hasn’t made mistakes? But let’s not forget that the Israelis also admitted that our rockets have become more efficient and accurate. Therefore, its clear to everyone that they brought the victory and liberation in the Strip. And they will continue to serve us in our struggle until the liberation of all of Palestine.”

What is the definition of ‘all of Palestine’ for which the struggle will be continued?

“That means all the area occupied according to law, and we will continue to fight over it. And it means that we won’t give the IDF and the settlers who are escaping from Gaza to the West Bank to abuse our people there. Palestinian blood is one and therefore we are ready to continue the struggle. For this reasons we have already set up the units who work to smuggle the necessary knowledge for fighting techniques, especially to do with the rockets, from Gaza to the West Bank.

Hold on, rockets in the West Bank is a very dangerous thing. Would an (IDF) operation in Qalqilia cause rockets to fall on the Sharon area (central Israel) or on Tel Aviv?

“In principle, yes. But I am not saying that we will fire these rockets left, right and center. These rockets will be activated in proportion to Israeli activity. A small Israeli operation here and there will not tempt us to use the rockets, but a major assassination, or big infiltration into a city like Jenin, would force us to act. But as always, we won’t initiate, we will only respond to Israeli activities.”