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Qassam rocket (Archive photo)
Photo: Rafi Babian

Heavy rocket barrage hits Sderot

13 Qassams fired from Gaza toward western Negev town, surrounding communities. No injuries reported. Islamic Jihad, Salah al-Din Brigades claim responsibility for attack. 'We cannot continue like this,' resident says

A barrage of 13 Qassams was fired by Palestinians in north Gaza on the western Negev region Thursday morning. So far nine rocket falls have been located in Sderot and the vicinity. Most of the rockets landed in open fields.

 

No injuries were reported in the attack, but slight damage was done.

 

Islamic Jihad's Al-Quds Brigades and the Popular Resistance Committees' Salah al-Din Brigades claimed responsibility for the rocket fire. The IDF killed four terrorists in Gaza over the past 24 hours, and a growing number of commanders in the area are calling for a wide-scale operation in the Strip.

 

One of the rockets landed near Sapir College in the Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council area, just five meters from one of the campus's employees, but did not explode.

 

'I can't stay here'

The students gathered in secure areas upon hearing the Color Red siren.

 

"It was one of the scariest days I've ever lived through in Sderot," Baruch Dahari told Ynet." I was alone and the entire house began to shake. Windows shattered from the blasts. One rocket landed right next to my house, and another landed by the cemetery.

 

"I can still smell that horrible smell that follows the rocket attacks," he said. "I plan on leaving the town immediately. I can't stay here; it's just horrible."

 

Another resident of Sderot said, "The Color Red alert system was installed right next to my house, and it is awful to hear it being activated constantly. It's no less frightening than the explosions.

 

"We cannot continue like this," she said.

 

The Home Front Command began installing beefed up bus stops which can withstand rocket attacks. These have been introduced following a demand by the PTA and the Sderot Security Headquarters to install them as a condition for beginning the new school year in the town.

 

On Wednesday Israeli intelligence released a video showing a cell of three terrorists launching mortar shells toward the Negev from a Gaza schoolyard.

 

A senior IDF officer told Ynet that Palestinian terror organizations continue to abuse the civilian population in Gaza by launching attacks against Israel from their midst.

 

"They don't think twice about firing Qassam rockets near crowded public areas, even though they're fully aware that they're endangering innocent civilians," said the officer.

 


פרסום ראשון: 11.01.07, 10:31
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