Qassam directly hits Sderot house
Two rockets fired from northern Gaza Strip Saturday afternoon, one lands on house in Sderot, narrowly misses Mayor Moyal's house; no injuries reported. Shortly after, IDF strikes Qassam cell responsible for attack
The rocket hit a house adjacent to the residence of Sderot Mayor Eli Moyal.
No one was injured and no damage was reported. "The Qassam rocket shook my house and landed some thirty meters from me," Moyal told Ynet.
The Qassam hit the house of the Hazan family, who was luckily spending the weekend outside town. Upon hearing of the attack, the family members began heading back to Sderot.
Sderot's security officer, Yehuda Ben Maman, estimated that the house was completely destroyed by the rocket.
Huge damage to house (Photo: Amir Cohen)
Ofer Abutbul, a 42 year-old Sderot resident, who was visiting a friend on the street where the Qassam landed, told Ynet: "We were at the house, three adults and two children. We heard the Qassam whistle and all fell to the floor. The rocket struck a house adjacent to my friend's house, and all the windows shattered. Fortunately no one was hurt."
Qassam cell targeted
Minutes after the rocket attack, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip reported that a cell of gunmen was hit by and Israel Defense Forces shell.
The army said the targeted gunmen were responsible for launching the attack on Sderot. A tank identified the cell soon after its members fired a rocket into Israel and launched a shell in their direction.
The shell hit a house and a car in which gunmen were hiding, Palestinian eyewitnesses said. Two gunmen fled the car suffering light injuries. The condition of two gunmen who hid in the house remain unclear.
The Qassam fire has increased in the last two weeks, simultaneously to the IDF's operations to locate Qassam cells.
In a meeting of the security cabinet this week, the ministers had instructed the army to draft a comprehensive plan to end the rocket attacks, and had also approved the principles for the continued efforts in Gaza against the rocket launchers and the smuggling of arms from Egypt into the Strip.
Although no special operations have been okayed, the military activity is expected to be boosted in light of the escalation in Palestinian attacks.
Hanan Greenberg contributed to the report
