Sderot after rocket hit
Photo: Albert Sadikov
Site where rocket fell
Photo: Avi Rokeach
Rocket in the middle of the street
Photo: Albert Sadikov
Sixth victim mourned in Sderot
Residents of Sderot wake up again to sounds of explosion. Some of them are calling IDF to 'erase' Beit Hanoun, others have given up hope. 'There is sense that someone in gov't has interest in destruction, death here. It serves political interests,' said one Sderot resident
Sderot is mourning its sixth victim since the fatal rocket barrages have started raining down over the town. In the earlier hours of Wednesday morning, a rocket barrage was fired at Defense Minister Amir Peretz's neighborhood. One of the rockets critically injured a 57-year-old woman as well as a 24-year-old bodyguard standing outside Peretz's house. A short time later, the woman died of her wounds.
Avi Parhan, a Gush Katif evacuee temporarily living in Sderot, said: "This morning it was proven that even miracles come to an end. I returned this week from the United States. In meetings with people there, they were amazed that the IDF apologized for all damage to civilians, like in Beit Hanoun.
"There is the sense that someone in the government has an interest in all this death and destruction. It serves their political interests," accused Arye Cohen, one of the known activists in Sderot.
Upon his arrival to the site of the rocket hit, Cohen said, "I am hurt by what is happening here. We already can't take it any more. Perhaps with the help of the political interests we can make excuses for all of the government's moves. But there isn't really any intention of stopping the terrorism against us. At the end of the day, they are abandoning us."
Injured man being evacuated to hospital (Photo: Reuters)
Despite the heavy rain in the neighborhood in which the rocket fell, many people gathered in the streets. The outrage increases from rocket to rocket and the residents continue to call the IDF to take action, to shoot at Beit Hanoun, to capture Beit Hanoun, to erase Beit Hanoun.
Yaakov Cohen stood at the end of the street that was hit and explained: "From here we need to start taking action in order to convene the UN Security Council. It shouldn't be that after each time we kill someone, the Security Council convenes. If the government doesn't do that, we, the residents, simply need to turn to the UN to ask them to stop the shooting at us that has continued for some time. The sad this is that it just keeps getting worse."
About a year ago, a protest tent was set up outside the defense minister's house, not far from where the rocket fell Wednesday. Only after the defense minister, the prime minister, and other public figures visited was the tent dismantled. Now, members of the protest movement are sorry they left it.
Rocket Havoc
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"We mustn't ingratiate ourselves because the rocket launchers are placed amongst the civilian population. After they warn them of the attack and they don't do anything, whoever gets hurt will get hurt. We are at war, if someone doesn't understand that yet," he said.
Parhan explained, "It is a tribal society that doesn't allow anybody to do anything, even within a residential neighborhood, without consent. Everything is with agreement, otherwise there would be blood revenge. So they shouldn't try to show us miserable civilians who have been hurt by IDF fire. They gave shelter to those shooting at us."
Peretz also lives in an unfortified house
Effie Cohen, Peretz's assistant, and his wife Corinne, were the first to arrive and give aid the injured. Despite being a nurse by profession, Corinne testified that the situation was very difficult to deal with. She treated an injured woman together with the Magen David Adom crews, but she ultimately died of her wounds.
The defense minister called to ask how Cohen and the injured man were doing. "Amir called only out of honest concern for the residents and for us. He truly wanted to know what is happening and if everyone is okay. I know that there is a lot of criticism about him, but even he lives in an unfortified house. He is one of us. He truly is trying to do the best he can," said Corinne.
Batel Malka, a student making her way to Sappir College, said that she heard "an explosion like we had never heard. At first we were in a fortified area, but afterwards we went out to see what's happening. It has continued too long. Amir Peretz lives here and he knows what is happening. We hope very much that we will manage to meet him soon to talk with him, because the situation is intolerable."
The explosion caught Miriam Timsit at the convenience store she owns. "Things just started falling off their shelves. Everything shook. I was completely panicked. It was just terrible, as well as the scene outside. I already don't know what I'll do next time here the Color Red alert system."
Not far from where the rocket hit is an old-age home, in which 70 elderly spend their time in a recreation center. According to the home manager Elana Hartov, during the rocket attack, the elderly people stayed in their place. "Most of them are in wheelchairs or with walkers. It is impossible to transfer them to a fortified area. We try to calm them through other means."
Tova Dadon contributed to this report
