Hamas fired missiles earlier today that struck in the center of Ashkelon, killing one and wounding at least ten. See this report in Haaretz for further details. We bring you footage of two of these attacks on Ashkelon. The first missile hit a construction zone, while the second video shows the chaos surrounding a missile strike in Ashkelon’s soccer stadium.
Tomorrow, 30 December, from 1-3PM EST, David Saranga, Consul of Media and Public Affairs in New York, will answer your questions about the situation in Israel and Gaza in a “Citizens’ Press Conference.”
You can submit your question by directing it to our Twitter account at http://www.twitter.com/IsraelConsulate . We will do our best to answer through Twitter. If an answer requires more than the 140 character limit, we will respond on Twitter with a link to an answer posted in this blog.
We hope you will be able to join us–tell your friends!!
Today marks the second day of Israel’s military operations in the Gaza Strip, code-named “Cast Lead.” The media has reported widely on these developments, and we have worked to bring you some of their updates and insights into the situation. As background, it is helpful to remember that, as of 2005, Israel has no military or civilian presence in the Gaza Strip. Since that time, Hamas has routinely fired missiles at Sderot and nearby towns in the Western Negev (attacks that violate the rules of war), even during the recent “State of Calm.” Last week, Hamas unilaterally rejected a renewal of the “State of Calm” and resumed missile fire even as Israel sought an extension of the lull agreement. These renewed attacks against Israel precipitated the present operations.
You can find more information below.
Humanitarian Aid to Gaza
Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit severely criticized Hamas for provoking Israel’s operations in Gaza. Below, you can find a video clip from his speech, with subtitles.
Transcript: For quite some time, Egypt has been warning. Whoever tried to confuse the understand of [ignore] this warning, must bear the responsibility. The Prime Minister of Israel warned the Hamas and said: “You must stop, otherwise we will take measures in response.” In response to what? To not renewing the calm, to the rocket fire. Just before the arrival of [Israeli Foreign Minister] Livni to Egypt, 60 rockets were fired from Gaza!
Even before Hamas officially decided against renewing the “State of Calm” that had been in effect since mid-June, terrorists had resumed firing missiles and mortar shells at Sderot and the Western Negev. In light of this intolerable situation, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Gabriela Shalev, wrote a strongly worded letter of protest to Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon. She noted that Israel is committed to seeking peace and is willing to renew the “state of calm,” but it appears that Hamas is not so disposed. For the full text of the letter, see the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The State of Israel today released 224 Palestinian prisoners, thereby implementing a government decision made on 07 December. The release of prisoners is meant as a measure of building confidence in the moderate government of President Mahmoud Abbas and in the process of negotiations he has undertaken with Israel. Israel’s actions also send the message that the pursuit of terrorism and violence cannot achieve anything. Today’s prisoner release comes in honor of the Eid al-Adha holiday and in deference to the high priority given to this issue within Palestinian society. The Jerusalem Post has further information on these developments.
Since we are aware that access to YouTube.com is blocked in some schools, we have uploaded a copy of this video to an alternative, educational video site – teachertube.com. If you cannot watch this video, please click here.
A counter-terrorism conference in Tel Aviv featured Tawfik Hamid, an expert on the subject who was once himself a member of Jamaa Islamiyya and a disciple of Ayman al-Zawahiri, al-Qaeda’s #2. JPost reports on his ideas to fight terrorism in a comprehensive manner–through education, psychology and other military and non-military means.
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