Israel turns its fire on Gaza
Israel pounded the northern Gaza Strip with artillery fire today, killing a Palestinian police officer and wounding nine people as Israel escalated its retaliation for militant rocket attacks and put pressure on the new Hamas government that refuses to stop the attacks.
The shelling, which also set a plastics factory ablaze, was part of an Israeli offensive to stop the waves of rockets launched from Gaza into southern Israel. No Israelis were wounded in the rocket fire over the weekend.
In all, 15 Palestinians, including 13 militants and the child of one of the radicals, have died in Israeli air and artillery strikes since Friday.
Israel’s stepped-up military strikes came after the Islamic Hamas government, which rejects Israel’s right to exist, took power less than two weeks ago. Over the weekend, it began for the first time firing artillery at rocket-launching sites in populated areas.
Acting Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said the military has been given a free hand to act against militants.
“Security forces will act decisively against anyone who fires Qassam (rockets), or anyone who will deal or deals in terror,” Olmert said before the weekly Cabinet meeting. ”There are no restrictions on security forces in the event they identify danger.”
Hamas’ military wing condemned the “dangerous escalation” and vowed revenge.
“We warn the government of this monstrous entity against committing more crimes, because this will provoke more destruction and escalated military attacks against them and their people,” it said in a statement posted on Hamas’ website.
Police officer Yasser Abu Jarad, 28, was trying to evacuate colleagues from a makeshift military post when a shell hit his car and killed him, Palestinian security officials said. The army said it had warned Palestinian security officers posted near launching sites that they could be in danger from Israeli retaliation.
Israel has launched 900 artillery shells at northern Gaza since Thursday, the army said. During that time, the militants fired 10 rockets at Israel.
While Israel has been pressuring Hamas with military strikes, the US and European Union cut off of hundreds of millions of dollars in desperately needed aid to the Palestinian Authority. The US and EU classify Hamas as a terror group.
Israel suspended the monthly transfer of some €65m in taxes it collects on behalf of the Palestinian Authority shortly after Hamas won the January 25 Palestinian parliamentary elections. It also banned Hamas leaders from travelling between the West Bank and Gaza.
Israel’s Cabinet was to discuss a more detailed policy toward Hamas today.
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