Two Migrant Workers Wounded in Qassam Strike on Negev

by Fadi Eyadat, Yuval Azoulay and Mijal Grinberg
Haaretz
June 3, 2008

http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/181/two-migrant-workers-wounded-in-qassam-strike-on

Two migrant workers from Thailand were wounded, one moderately and the other lightly, on Saturday morning when a Qassam rocket hit the western Negev greenhouse in which he was working.

Magen David Adom emergency services personnel evacuated both men to Soroka Medical Center in Be'er Sheva for treatment.

Earlier in the day, Palestinian militants fired five Qassam rockets from the Gaza Strip. No casualties or damage were reported.

Haim Yelin, head of the Eshkol Regional Council, condemned the government's handling of the ongoing attacks against communities bordering on Gaza.

Addressing the government and Knesset, Yelin fumed: Cease dealing with Olmert's envelopes - because every one of you carries behind your back a massive envelope containing the lack of morals [you exhibit] when you leave residents to face Qassams, mortars and an intolerable security situation."

"Before you preach to Olmert about morality, solve our problem," he added, referring to allegations that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was transferred hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash-filled envelopes by a Jewish American fundraiser.

Also on Saturday, Palestinian officials said the Israel Defense Forces struck a Hamas cell near Khan Yunis. No casualties were reported in the incident, and an IDF spokesperson has yet to confirm the strike.

In a separate incident on Saturday, Gaza officials said an explosion in the house of a Hamas militant has killed the man and wounded 16 of his relatives and neighbors.

The Palestinian Interior Ministry said it was investigating the cause of Saturday's blast at the home of Hamas operative Nader Abu Shaban.

Hamas officials said Abu Shaban was handling explosives when the blast occured. Doctors say two of the 16 wounded are in critical condition.

IDF fires into crowd of Hamas protesters

On Friday, IDF troops used gunfire and tear gas to keep more than 3,000 Hamas supporters from approaching one of the Gaza Strip's main border crossings with Israel, wounding at least six Palestinians, witnesses said.

Palestinian medical workers said at least two of the wounded were in a critical condition.

"The IDF will operate with all its strength to prevent the demonstrators from approaching the security fence or the crossing ... and from entering the state of Israel," an IDF official said.

During the standoff, Israeli forces shot into the crowd to "make the rioters back off," the IDF official said.

Since Hamas took over Gaza last year, Israel has closed all crossings,
allowing only humanitarian aid and Palestinians with urgent medical needs to cross. The demonstration Friday focused on demanding an end to the blockade.

The IDF had posted signs before the protest warning Palestinians that they faced "Danger of Death" if they tried to approach the Sufa crossing, used to bring some humanitarian supplies into the coastal territory.

Hamas has mounted several similar protests in recent months.

Hamas blew open the border with Egypt earlier this year, putting Israel on heightened alert for similar actions.

The demonstrators on Friday burned tires, waved green Hamas flags and chanted "Dismantle the siege."

In a separate incident Friday, Palestinian medical workers said a 65-year-old woman had died of wounds suffered a day earlier during an IDF raid near her home in the southern Gaza Strip.

Related Topics:  Hamas, Militant Islam, Palestinian Rockets  |  Fadi Eyadat  |  Yuval Azoulay  |  Mijal Grinberg receive the latest by email: subscribe to the free jewish policy center mailing list