5 Hurt in Kassam Barrage from Gaza

by Jerusalem Post Staff
Jerusalem Post
June 3, 2008

http://www.jewishpolicycenter.org/183/5-hurt-in-kassam-barrage-from-gaza

Three Gazan terrorists were hit in an IAF air strike hit as they were launching Kassam rockets from the southern Gaza Strip in two separate incidents on Tuesday afternoon.

An IDF spokesman confirmed the attack as did the Palestinians, reporting that three operatives from Islamic Jihad were indeed wounded in the air strike, one of whom was left in critical condition.

Five people were wounded earlier Tuesday when a barrage of Palestinian Kassam rockets hit the Eshkol region in the western Negev.

A Thai worker suffered moderate wounds to the head, and four other were lightly hurt by shrapnel. They were evacuated to Soroka Hospital in Beersheba.

Also Tuesday, the IDF attacked a terrorist in a Kassam launch squad in the southern Gaza Strip.

The army confirmed that the Palestinian was hit in the attack.

Earlier in the day an IDF soldier was moderately wounded by a Palestinian sniper attack near the border of Gaza and Israel.

According to reports, the soldier - from the Engineering Corps - was engaged in construction work along the security fence near the Kissufim crossing at the time of the attack. He was evacuated by helicopter to Soroka Hospital for treatment.

Hamas claimed responsibility for the shooting, but gave details which differed slightly from the IDF account.

"We fired mortar shells, and the enemy reported that one soldier was wounded," Hamas said.

Indeed, around the same time that the soldier was hurt, a mortar shell strike was reported. However, the shell landed in an open area in the western Negev, and did not cause any injuries or damage.

Meanwhile, a Katyusha rocket was fired by Palestinian terrorists at the western Negev. The Russian-made projectile, the first of its kind to be fired from Gaza, landed in an open area and did not cause casualties or damage.

Related Topics:  Militant Islam, Palestinian Rockets  |  Jerusalem Post Staff receive the latest by email: subscribe to the free jewish policy center mailing list