Five rockets were fired from Syria overnight Saturday and exploded near communities in the Golan Heights.
The IDF said that there were no physical injuries in the attacks.
Three sirens were heard in local communities before the rockets
exploded. One power line sustained damage and residents reported power
outages.
In July, a rocket was fired from Syria but, according to the IDF Spokesperson, it exploded on the Syrian side of the Golan Heights and did not hit Israeli territory.
That incident came a few days a mortar shell from Syria was fired towards the Israeli side of the Golan Heights and exploded near the Druze village of Mas’ade.
The projectile strike from Syria came hours after a separate incident on Saturday night in which a rocket fired from Lebanon hit a building in an open area in the Upper Galilee.
Two children were lightly injured by shrapnel and four people were suffering from shock as a result of the attack.
The news agency NNA, citing its correspondent in Tire, said the rockets were fired towards Israel and that the Lebanese army had encircled the suspected launch area.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.
Just one question to those of you reading from abroad: Would you want to live like this? Well, we don't either. And this has nothing to do with borders. It has to do with our existence.
Two suspects arrested in Lebanon for firing rockets on Israel
We can hope that the government of Lebanon has learned its lesson (the picture is Beirut Airport on fire in 2006). Two individuals have been arrested in connection with the Katyusha rocket that was fired at Israel early this morning, and other rockets ready for firing have been found.
The Internal Security Forces detained a suspect allegedly behind the rocket fire into Israel, security sources said.
Hours
before Atwe's arrest, the ISF Information Branch apprehended a Lebanese
man, identified only as Abu Qais, in Hebbarieh after they found blood
stains in his car, which sparked a search of area hospitals for
suspects.
The sources told The Daily Star that Lebanese Army Intelligence
had found traces of six rockets in the Mari area in the Hasbaya
region, some 2 kilometers from the Blue Line, the de facto border
between the two states.
They said the Army defused two 107mm Grad
rockets that were prepared to be fired toward Israel following a search
for launch pads.
The sources confirmed that three rockets, which
have a range of 10 kilometers, had been fired from the Mari area near
Majidieh between 1 a.m. and 6 a.m. Only one projectile was reported to
have hit Israel, according to the Israeli army.
The Lebanese
security sources said a sixth rocket failed to fire and exploded in
place, wounding the person handling it. They said traces of blood and a
ripped shoe were found at the site.
The problem is that Hezbullah is a huge player in Lebanon's government. Tomorrow, July 12, is the eighth anniversary of the murder of Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev HY"D (May God Avenge their blood) by Hezbullah.
The IDF needs to finish this off quickly. If people feel that they have
to flee to the north and Hezbullah gets involved (which is what happened
in 2006 when we had a skirmish with Hamas and then Hezbullah got
involved), we could God forbid be in big trouble.
As the rocket fire from Gaza terrorists continues to pelt southern
and central Israel, a new front appears to have opened Friday morning as
a Katyusha rocket was fired on the northern tip of Israel, north of
Kiryat Shmona.
The rocket, which apparently was fired from terrorists in Lebanon
likely associated with the Iran-proxy Hezbollah terror group, landed in
open territory in the upper Galilee.
Residents of the region report having heard explosions, although no injuries or damage was reported from the rocket. IDF forces are searching the area to locate the point of contact and rule out further rocket attacks.
"One projectile hit an open space near Kfar Yuval, between Metula and Kiryat Shmona," a military spokeswoman told AFP, listing two towns near Israel's northern border.
The IDF returned artillery fire later in the morning, targeting
locations in Lebanon suspected of being the source of the rocket fire,
reports Yedioth Aharonoth.
The IDF needs to finish off Hamas in a hurry. There may be a bigger battle to be fought.
The rocket was not fired by Hezbollah but by a small radical
organization in Lebanon, Maj.-Gen. (res). Amos Gilad, director of
Political-Security Affairs at the Defense Ministry, told Channel 2.
And Hezbullah isn't responsible for the 'smaller' groups like Hamas is in Gaza?
After the projectiles landed in Israel near the norther city of
Kiryat Shmona and the ensuing IDF response of massive artillery fire,
UNIFIL head, Commander Major-General Paolo Serra immediately contacted
the Lebanese Armed Forces and the IDF.
Serra said, “This is a very
serious incident in violation of UN Security Council resolution 1701
and is clearly directed at undermining stability in the area. UNIFIL’s
first imperative is to ensure that there is no further escalation of the
situation and I have been assured by the parties of their full
cooperation with UNIFIL in this effort and of their continued commitment
to the cessation of hostilities.”
He added, “Our troops on the ground are working with the Lebanese
Armed Forces to reinforce security and locate the rocket launching site.
UNIFIL has intensified its patrols across our area of operations to
prevent any further incidents.”
“It is of paramount importance to identify and apprehend the
perpetrators of this attack and we will spare no efforts to this end
working in cooperation with the Lebanese Armed Forces.”
Israel Radio reported on Sunday afternoon that the Lebanese Armed Forces had located the rocket launchers used by the terrorists.
Maybe if UNIFIL had reasonable engagement rules they might actually have a chance of being effective. But then, given who negotiated UN Security Council Resolution 1701 for Israel, the rules' ineffectiveness was all but guaranteed.
Breaking: Lebanese terrorists fire Katyusha rockets at northern Israel, IDF responds with artillery toward souces of fire
Residents of Kiryat Shmona, near the Lebanese border, awoke on Sunday to Katyusha rockets being fired at them. The IDF has responded with artillery toward the sources of fire.
The IDF responded with intense artillery fire toward the
location from which four rockets were launched in southern Lebanon just
minutes after residents of the border town of Kiryat Shmona heard loud
explosions.
Army sources say that the source of the fire has been
identified but that it was too soon to say which organization is
responsible for the attack.
Two Katyusha rockets exploded near
Kiryat
Shmona, where residents reported seeing smoke rising from a fire sparked
by one of the
projectiles which landed on a hill overlooking the city. Two other
rockets landed in Lebanese territory. No injuries or damage was
reported.
Nissim Malka, Mayor of Kiryat Shmona, told
Channel 2 News, "We woke up to the sounds of rockets this morning. At
the moment residents are going to work as normal. We will notify them of
changes if necessary."
IAF hits target near Beirut, PFLP claims they were the target
The IAF struck a 'terror target' south of Beirut on Friday morning. The Popular Front for the Liberation of 'Palestine' claims that they were the target, but the IAF is not saying whether that's true. A Sunni group had taken 'credit' for the Katyusha rockets fired at Israel on Thursday that prompted Friday's attack.
"Yesterday’s attack is a blatant breach on Israeli sovereignty that
jeopardized Israeli civilian life. Israel will not tolerate terrorist
aggression originating from Lebanese territory," the IDF said.
According
to the statement, the Israeli air strike was hit the target accurately
and announced that all of the pilots involved in the mission returned to
Israel safely.
A Palestinian militant group in Lebanon said one
of its bases south of Beirut was the target hit by the IAF, but said it
caused no injuries or significant damage, Hezbollah-affiliated TV
network Al-Manar reported.
The station quoted a spokesman for the
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command as saying
the group's base in Na'ameh was attacked. The spokesman said the PFLP-GC
was surprised it was targeted because the earlier rocket fire was
claimed by a separate al-Qaida-linked Sunni Muslim group.
A
Lebanese security source confirmed that a rocket hit an area near
Na'ameh, south of the Lebanese capital Beirut, near a network of tunnels
used by the PFLP-GC in hills overlooking the Mediterranean coast. He
said the rocket caused a 5-meter (16-foot) crater, but no casualties.
Israel
said it holds the Lebanese government responsible for the rocket fire
that occurred on Thursday, even though a Sunni group called the Abdallah
al-Azzam Brigades claimed responsibility for the rockets earlier on
Thursday.
[T]he PFLP-GC was surprised it was targeted because the earlier rocket
fire was claimed by the Abdullah Azzam Brigades -- an al-Qaeda-linked
group which had claimed similar rocket fire on Israel in 2009 and 2011.
Hours after the militants fired four rockets on Israel from Lebanon
Thursday, the Jewish state’s air forces carried out an attack against
them.
“The IAF (Israeli air force) targeted a terror site located
between Beirut and Sidon in response to a barrage of four rockets
launched at northern Israel yesterday,” Agence France-Presse quoted a
statement from the army as saying.
“The pilots reported direct hits to the target.”
...
Lebanese President Michel Sleiman also denounced the Thursday rocket
fire. He said it was a violation of U.N. resolutions and of Lebanese
sovereignty and urged security forces to hunt the gunmen and bring them
to justice.
Gee, you don't think Sleiman is wetting his pants over the prospect of finding himself in the same position as Fouad Saniora was seven years ago, do you?
Israel did what had to be done. We couldn't just exercise 'restraint' as Obama urged, because if we did, we'd be hit again. But there was no need to go ballistic over a couple of rockets that did no damage. But if this happens again, or if God forbid there is damage, we have sent the message that all hell will break loose.
Once again, President Hussein Obama cannot decide what to do, so he splits the difference. He condemns Hezbullah rocket fire on Israel, but claims not to know who did it and calls for Israeli restraint.
The United States is calling for "restraint" from both Israel and
Lebanon after three rockets, fired from Lebanese territory, hit northern
Israeli towns.
"We strongly condemn the firing of rockets from Lebanon toward Israel," State Department deputy spokeswoman Dina Badawy told The Jerusalem Post. "This was a provocative act that undermines the stability of Lebanon and the security of Israel."
Badawy called the rocket fire a violation of the Blue Line, as prescribed by UNSCR 1701.
The State Department could not immediately confirm the source of the rocket fire, or details of the incident, Badawy said.
"We again strongly underscore the need for Lebanon to exercise full sovereignty over its territory," she said.
Breaking: Katyusha rockets from Lebanon slam into western Galilee
Three or four Katyusha rockets were fired from southern Lebanon toward the western Galilee on Thursday afternoon. One was shot down by Iron Dome between Akko and Nahariya on the Mediterranean coast. The others did not fall in Israel according to the IDF spokesman.
Three to four rockets were fired at Israel from south Lebanon, from an
area south of Tyre. One rocket was intercepted by Iron Dome between Acre
and Nahairya. The remainder did not fall in Israeli territory, IDF
Spokesman Brig.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai said.
At least two explosions
were heard in the vicinity of the northern Israeli city of Nahariya,
according to Channel 2. No injuries or damage was reported.
According to Channel 10, two people who went in shock have been rushed to hospital in Nahariya for treatment.
Channel
2 is reporting that the Iron Dome anti-missile system intercepted one
of the rockets. The other three projectiles landed in uninhabited areas.
Channel
2 is also reporting that witnesses saw three rockets explode near
Nahariya. At least one rocket is known to have hit a kibbutz near the
city.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the
attack. Southern Lebanon is a stronghold of Lebanese Hezbollah
guerrillas and Palestinian militants have launched rockets from that
area at Israel in the past.
The picture at the top is from Nahariya in 2006 (the Second Lebanon War). Are we headed there again? Is Hezbullah looking for another war? If so, I don't believe that Israel has the time to do things surgically as was done in 2006. I would look for a war to be a lot bloodier.
But I don't think this has anything to do with Israel. I think it has to do with Hezbullah needing to remind the Lebanese people that Israel is the 'real enemy' and not the combatants in the civil war in Syria.
Topographical map of a 'demilitarized' 'Palestinian state'
The picture at the top of this post is a topographical map that illustrates the consequences for Israel of a 'demilitarized' 'Palestinian state.' You can see a larger and more detailed version of the map here.
Hezzbullah plot to fire Katyusha rockets at Israel from Lebanon foiled by Hezbullah?
Two ready-to-launch Katyusha rockets were 'discovered' four kilometers from Lebanon's border with Israel on Monday. It's not clear who put them there, and it's also not clear who decided to disarm them. One or both may have been Hezbullah.
Two katyusha rockets aimed at Israel and set to launch were discovered Monday in the southern region of Mazraat Halta, near the occupied Kfar Shuba Hills, a security source told The Daily Star.
The source said the rockets were defused by security forces.
According to the source, attempts to launch rockets from Lebanon to Israel occur every time there is an aggression against Gaza.
Launching rockets from Lebanon to Israel is usually done as a message of solidarity with Gaza, the source said.
Security sources told The Daily Star the rockets could reach 7 kilometers into Israel if launched in full power.
The sources said that the two rockets were placed 4 kilometers away from the Lebanese-Israeli borders.
Here's a video of then-Prime Minister Yitzchak Rabin telling the Knesset that there won't be any Katyusha rockets from Gaza (as were being shot from Lebanon at the time by Hezbullah), and that the Likud - which was in opposition and opposed to the Oslo Accords back then - is just 'afraid' of 'peace.'
Sorry, Hebrew only, but now that you know what it says, the images will be striking.
Here's Soccer Dad's Middle East Media Sampler for Tuesday, November 29.
1) The story that Time manufactured
In September, 2010, Time Magazine featured a cover story, Why Israel doesn't want peace. It was written by Time's new Middle East correspondent, Karl Vick. Vick, in writing such tripe, showed himself to be a worthy heir to the likes of Tony Karon and Tim McGuirk, willing to push an anti-Israel narrative to substitute for news.
Now Vick has graduated to explaining how the terrorist organization, Hamas, really does want peace. But as Honest Reporting points out, the source for Vick's positive assessment is his inability to understand the word, "popular."
The disconnect is simple. When Palestinians say “popular” Vick hears “non-violent.” But what they mean is grassroots. In the Palestinian dictionary, kids throwing stones at Israelis is grassroots “popular” resistance no less than adults holding a grassroots “popular” candlelight vigil. Gilad Shalit wasn’t kidnapped by any old resistance committees. He was snatched and held captive by the Popular Resistance Committees. Their popularity comes from promising to kidnap more soldiers, not holding marches, witty chants, or clever signs. Whatever Hamas signed onto in Cairo doesn’t represent Hamas moderation but Fatah extremism.
Elder of Ziyon takes issue with Vick's assertion that Hamas is moving closer to Fatah, which, at least, makes a pretense of coexistence with Israel.
Hamas cannot and will not recognize Israel. It cannot and will not accept a Jewish state in any form whatsoever. Literally. Its entire charter is based on Israel's destruction, and if Hamas can be counted upon for anything, it is to remain true to its principles. They have been remarkably consistent in their stated positions since their inception. If Vick actually believes that Hamas is one bit closer to recognizing Israel than they were in 2005 or 1995, then he is an idiot who simply refuses to open his eyes. I can see the PLO muddying the language of its recognition of Israel to accommodate Hamas. But it is absolutely inconceivable that Hamas would accept the current stated PLO position of recognizing Israel and officially being against terrorism (a position the PLO roundly ignored only a few short years ago anyway.) ... Hamas is not moderating, and it never will. Just as there were people who were convinced that Hamas had moderated during the 2005 elections, and that Hamas had moderated before Cast Lead, there will always be credulous and utterly incompetent analysts who believe that Hamas is becoming more peaceful now.
Here we go again. It’s the Islamists’ turn this time to follow the same pattern as they dispose of their former, nationalist partners while simultaneously wiping the floor with the moderates. Why do people keep choosing a path that leads to disaster? For many reasons, one of them being that it can be portrayed as glamorous, heroic, and devoted to justice. Why should we expect more of the Middle East when even Western societies which have full access to historic reality and political philosophy are ready to jump off the cliff?
Ten days ago, frustrated revolutionaries returned to Tahrir Square, the revolt’s birthplace, vowing to stay until the military submits to a civilian authority. More than 40 have died in clashes with riot police and troops. But the square, washed by heavy rain Sunday night, looked bedraggled and relatively deserted today; conflicted militants had left it to go and vote in an election they feel has been stacked against them. “We are truly feeling that the revolution is being stolen,” one of the Tahrir leaders, Shadi Ghazali Harb, told me. He and other young secular liberals have been reduced to a somewhat desperate bet: that a “second wave” of the revolution can prevent a creeping takeover of the country by Islamists, a restoration of the old autocratic order by the military, or some toxic mix of the two.
Consider that instead of putting their energy into organizing, uniting, and getting out the vote, they are engaged in thoroughly useless demonstrations in Tahrir Square. What is the goal of these demonstrations? On one hand, they demand that the turnover of power be moved up; on the other hand, moderate politicians speak of postponing the balloting. Muhammad ElBaradei, once the Americans’ favorite candidate (before the Obama Administration switched to backing the anti-American, antisemitic Muslim Brotherhood) is actually creating his own virtual government! What a putz! Think about it. How can the moderates demand an immediate turnover of power? Turnover to whom? There is no executive authority. Clearly, no serious thought has gone into this campaign. If anything they should be demanding that the military stays in power longer since it is the only thing standing between them and the Muslim Brotherhood. And yet while the moderates are doing their Three Stooges routine over the turnover of power, the issue has already been resolved! The Brotherhood made a deal with the army junta and moved up the presidential elections by a full year. Instead of June 2013, presidential elections will be held around June 2012. That’s only seven months from now. And unless the moderate leaders drop their own candidacy and get behind Amr Moussa, the Brotherhood will win that one, too.
Both describe how the moderates have failed to unite. Prof. Rubin has provided more details and Diehl seems to be more hopeful, even now.
Former Israeli ambassador to Egypt, Zvi Mazel explains why - despite Diehl's stated objections - it is necessary for the army to retain control for now in Egypt. (via Daily Alert)
The political arena is split between secular, Islamists, young revolutionary and other political parties in a state of total confusion. As for the army, it cannot relinquish power because there is no one to take over. There is talk of setting up a civilian presidential committee, or of handing the reins to the Supreme Court, but there is no consensus for either solution and it is hard to see how organizations which are not representative and which have no executive powers could maintain law and order while ensuring an orderly political process in the chaotic situation prevailing today. It seems as if the army will have to stay on while keeping the elections on course, opening a frank dialogue with all political forces and drafting with them the longed-awaited new constitution.
A short while ago, a number of rockets hit the Western Galilee. No casualties were reported. The IDF responded by targeting the origins of the fire. The IDF regards this incident as severe, and holds the Lebanese government and the Lebanese Army responsible for preventing any rocket fire toward Israel. The IDF Northern Command is operationally prepared, and conducting an ongoing situation assessment in light of the incident.
I wouldn't let Hezbullah off so easily. There was a huge explosion yesterday at or near the Iranian nuclear plant near Isfahan. Iran is Hezbullah's patron and whether or not we had anything to do with it, Israel must be a suspect in that blast. Could the Hezbullah rockets have been a warning to us? I would not completely discount that possibility.
The mainstream media, aided largely by politicans, have been flogging the myth of the moderate Islamists, which is exactly what the Brotherhood wants them to do. Because if the media lie for them, they don’t have to. And if they only speak their Jew-hatred in Arabic, well, then, the non-Arabic-speaking editors and writers of the AP, Reuters, the New York Times, Time Magazine, and all of the other media outlets that are carrying water for the Islamist takeover of the Middle East simply don’t report the truth. Because the truth goes against the narrative that Islamists, once in office, are going to change their anti-Israel, anti-Western tune because they have to deal with the day-to-day struggle of governing, doing things like collecting the garbage. This is exactly what every media outlet said about Hamas’ takeover of Gaza. Their extremism would moderate, because they’d be tax collectors and garbage collectors and they’d have to settle municipal issues and ultimately, they’d make peace with Israel. All of that has been proven false. Rockets still fly from Gaza into Israeli kindergartens. Men and women are no longer allowed to mix in hair salons and other places. Hamas is still sworn to Israel’d destruction, and they think they’re getting closer—because the Muslim Brotherhood just took over Morocco and is poised to take over Egypt. This is what will happen in Egypt, along with the persecution of millions of Egypt’s Christians, but the media narrative persists, and a blind eye is turned to the hatred and violence that is coming.
IDF artillery cannons pounded Lebanese targets early Tuesday morning in response to at least three rockets fired into northern Israel.
Three 122 millimeter rockets fired from within Lebanon, just north of the border, landed in the Western Galilee shortly after midnight, with police searching for a possible fourth rocket. No injuries were reported in the attacks.
The rockets landed close to the Lebanese border , causing some damage to a chicken coop and a gas tank. Firefighting crews were called in to cool down a propane gas tank that was struck.
Police were searching for a possible fourth rocket in the Western Galilee after residents reported hearing an explosion in the area.
The IDF said in a statement that it views the rocket attacks as a severe incident and it holds the Lebanese government and the Lebanese military responsible for preventing such actions.
The IDF Northern Command has gone on full alert and is holding continuous evaluation in light of the events, the statement added.
But here's the really interesting part, which was also just repeated on Israel Radio: The IDF doesn't think it was Hezbullah's doing.
The IDF assessment is that it is not Hezbollah, but rather al-Qaida or Palestinian terror groups who operate inside Lebanon that were behind the rocket fire, as has been the case in the past with isolated attacks.
I wouldn't let Hezbullah off so easily. There was a huge explosion yesterday at or near the Iranian nuclear plant near Isfahan. Iran is Hezbullah's patron and whether or not we had anything to do with it, Israel must be a suspect in that blast. Could the Hezbullah rockets have been a warning to us? I would not completely discount that possibility.
Oh and by the way, remember that explosion at the Hezbullah ammunition dump last week? Well, the IDF sent up a drone, and they now say that the explosion never happened.
The IDF has confirmed that their was not an explosion near the southern Lebanese city of Tyre last week, as opposed to media reports claiming that a blast had occurred.The reports had claimed that a Hezbollah weapons cache had exploded in the area, but the IDF sent a drone over the village which did not detect any indication of an explosion.
Israeli authorities are confirming that a Katyusha rocket struck Bernit in the western Galilee on Monday night. A second rocket landing near Maalot has not yet been confirmed. The source of the rocket fire has not yet been found (link in Hebrew).
YNet reports that we were a lot closer to war last weekend than most Israelis realize. The war book is ready.
When Defense Minister Ehud Barak arrived at the Defense Ministry Headquarters’ meeting room last Saturday, a thick war book titled “Operation South” was already awaiting his approval on his desk. In those hours, Israel was on the verge of embarking on war in the Gaza Strip.
The book did not pertain to a limited operation. The selected targets would have certainly prompted a major flare-up, including difficult regional implications. Just like in Operation Cast Lead, the political leadership granted immunity to no one in the Strip, regardless of his position or stature.
The detailed plans – the targets, scope, power and timing – would have left Hamas no breathing space and time to debate its response. It would have gone for the jackpot, right away. Indeed, Israel’s war plan included preparations for massive rocket fire from Gaza, including long-range missiles aimed at central Israel in general, and at Tel Aviv in particular.
Last weekend, the General Staff Headquarters looked like on the eve of war. Officials were working around the clock and sleeping in their offices. While formulating the plans, top officials recalled the curse of arrogance of the Second Lebanon War. Back then, the decision to launch a war was taken without sufficient preparation. The military and political leadership decided to deliver a blow, immediately, without taking into account the implications, the enemy’s response, the home front’s condition and the ability to counter rocket barrages. This time around, a full, detailed plan was drafted; it also included the IDF Home Front Command’s deployment. Only then was the scheme presented to the political echelon.
Another lesson learned from the miserable confrontation vis-à-vis Hezbollah is to start such assaults with great fire power, in order to minimize as much as is possible the home front’s suffering. This lesson was already implemented in Operation Cast Lead; in other words, the power utilized during Cast Lead was to constitute the starting point of the next operation.
So what happened? Why didn't we go to war? You can probably guess - fear of how it would look with the UN vote coming up next month. My own view is that we are putting way too much emphasis on a UN vote that is largely meaningless. But it seems like the political echelon is determined to sit pat and absorb the rockets (yes, there were more last night) at least until the UN vote passes. Unless Tel Aviv is hit.
I have often discussed - albeit not recently - how Israel's government is much more willing to let Sderot get hit than they are willing to let Tel Aviv get hit. You see Sderot is NotInMyBackYard. Its population is mostly poor, Sfardi and less educated, while Tel Aviv's is wealthy (or middle class), Ashkenazi and highly educated. But in the next war with Gaza, says Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai, Hamas will fire missiles on Tel Aviv. And that's without even considering what Hezbullah might do.
"In the next conflict with Gaza, even if it at a much lower intensity than a war, missiles will fall on Gush Dan -- for all purposes, inside Tel Aviv," Vilnai said at an international defense conference in metropolitan Tel Aviv.
Intelligence officials have warned for more than two years that the Hamas terrorist regime in Gaza has smuggled missiles that can reach far beyond southern Israel, which was targeted nearly three years ago, before and during the counterterrorist Operation Cast Lead campaign.
Hamas and other terrorist groups have at least 10,000 missiles and rockets, according to military intelligence estimates. Advanced weapons are smuggled, in whole or in parts for assembly, enter Gaza from Iran, often via Sudan.
Vilnai said that Israel is improving its defense capabilities against missiles, and referred to bomb shelters and missile interceptors as well as retaliatory measures. Citing Israel’s tiny area, he said, "There is no country in the world that is threatened like the State of Israel," he said. "The only country that approximates it is South Korea."
Since the end of Operation Cast Lead, southern Israel has been attacked by nearly 300 missiles and rockets. Israel has carried out tit-for-tat retaliatory tactics, striking rocket manufacturing plants and terrorist tunnels. The Defense Ministry, headed by Ehud Barak, has not explained why orders have not been give to the IDF to conduct pre-emptive strikes before missiles cam bombard Israeli civilians.
Barak won't preempt because he's a 'peace processor' and he's afraid that Israel might actually win an all-out war. So he'll rely on Iron Dome and hope that it can hit 50 missiles at a time as well as it can hit two.
But I don't expect the government to have a high tolerance level for Tel Aviv being bombed. After all, Tel Aviv is InMyBackYard.
I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for thirty-five years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 13 to 33 years and nine grandchildren. Four of our children are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com
