Israel Matzav

Grad rockets shot from Sinai at Israel; UPDATE: ONE DEAD IN JORDAN

Israel Radio is reporting that four Grad rockets were shot on Monday morning from Sinai at Eilat - presumably by 'Palestinians' and not by Egyptians. One of the rockets fell in the water off Eilat, two landed across the Gulf of Eilat in Aqaba (Jordan) and caused property damage but no casualties. It is not clear to me where the fourth one landed. More details when I have them.

UPDATE 4:17 PM

A Jordanian taxi driver in Aqaba has died as a result of his taxi being hit by one of Monday morning's rockets and four other people in Aqaba were wounded. Six rockets were shot from the Sinai desert into Eilat (Israel) and Aqaba (Jordan) on Monday morning.

Jordan condemned Monday the firing of a rocket that struck near the Intercontinental Hotel in Aqaba in which a Jordanian man was killed and four others were injured. The rocket was one of six which struck the area, including a second rocket in Jordan, one near Eilat, two in the Red Sea and one in the Sinai Peninsula.

In a statement released by the Jordanian Information Ministry the rocket attack was called a "terror attack." Jordan promised to continue in its war against terror.

A Jordanian taxi driver injured in the attack died of his wounds Monday.

The rockets were almost definitely fired from Sinai, according to sources in the defense establishment quoted by Israel Radio. The rockets were suspected to have been launched from the Sinai Peninsula by Islamic Jihad, however Egyptian officials denied the assessment.

"No rockets were launched from the Sinai," said Egyptian sources. "To launch rockets from Egypt, it takes equipment and complicated logistical preparations. It is impossible, since the Sinai Peninsula has heavy security."

BBC Arabic reported that Egyptian security forces were scouring the area around Taba and Nuweiba, but had found no sign of a rocket launch.

Eilat Police sappers said that the Grad-type Katyushas were Iranian-made, with a range of some 20 kilometers. The rockets reportedly weighed 6 kilograms each.

According to an IDF statement, soldiers were scouring the area to determine the source of the attacks, which was unclear. The IDF was in contact with the Jordanian and Egyptian armies regarding the incident.

Rocket attacks in Eilat are rare but not unheard of, with two attacks having occurred in the last five years.

Funny how they know to call it a terror attack when it hits them.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:11 AM