The Jerusalem Post (www.jpost.com) reports that Palestinians have fired a Kassam rocket into a civilian area in Southern Israel.

Terrorists and a Kassam Rocket (archive)

A Kassam rocket hit a home in Kibbutz Sa'ad in the western Negev, nearly five kilometers from the Gaza Strip, Thursday night. No one was wounded as the house was unoccupied at the time, but it suffered extensive damage.

It was the second attack on the community in recent weeks.

The Negev is inside the green line (Israel borders of 1948, see the history and maps pages for details).

Israel's response was swift, and a couple of Kassam rocket labs were destroyed this morning:

Early Friday morning IDF tanks and troops swept through the Palestinian town of Rafah on the Egyptian border, killing a Palestinian, damaging houses and blowing up suspected weapons factories, residents and the military said. [...]

Palestinians said soldiers broke into the Fatah offices, destroyed equipment and caused considerable damage. The Israeli military said soldiers blew up six workshops used to manufacture rockets and mortars.

I copy both articles below.

Kassam rocket hits Kibbutz Sa'ad
By MARGOT DUDKEVITCH, Sep. 12, 2002
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?
pagename=JPost/A/JPArticle/
ShowFull&cid=1031666167232

A Kassam rocket hit a home in Kibbutz Sa'ad in the western Negev, nearly five kilometers from the Gaza Strip, Thursday night. No one was wounded as the house was unoccupied at the time, but it suffered extensive damage.

It was the second attack on the community in recent weeks.

Meanwhile near the Netzarim Junction, Palestinians fired an anti-tank rocket at a bus, accompanied by IDF jeeps, on its way to Netzarim. Security officials at first thought a bomb had been detonated near the convoy, but IDF officers said the explosion occurred 50 meters from the road. The IDF Spokesman said only at daybreak, when sappers are able to examine the area, will it become clear whether a bomb was detonated or a rocket fired.

Shortly before the attack on the convoy shots were fired at an IDF position at the Netzarim junction.
In the West Bank, a woman and an IDF officer were lightly wounded by gunfire in two separate incidents yesterday afternoon. The woman was grazed by a bullet and cut by glass shards in a drive-by shooting on the road between Einav and Avnei Hefetz in northern Samaria yesterday afternoon. The perpetrators are believed to have fled to Tulkarm. The officer was taken to Hillel Yaffe Hospital in Hadera after being hit in the leg in Tulkarm.

The curfew on Tulkarm was lifted for 12 hours and reinstated at 6 p.m.

Yesterday morning a bomb was detonated near soldiers in Bir Zeit, north of Ramallah.

Since Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat's speech to the Palestinian Legislative Council in Ramallah at the beginning of the week, in which he called for an end to attacks inside Israel but failed to condemn attacks in the West Bank and Gaza, there has been a noticeable rise in the number of violent incidents, especially in Gaza, where shooting and mortar attacks occur several times a day.

Early yesterday morning, in the Shejeiya neighborhood on the outskirts of Gaza City, soldiers demolished the home of Hamas terrorist Osama Hels, who murdered Etty Fahima, of Netzer Hazani, and wounded three others, one a two-year-old girl, when he opened fire at vehicles at the Gush Katif junction before soldiers killed him in November.

Palestinians reported a second house near Rafah was also demolished, but the IDF said two walls were damaged inadvertently by a bulldozer as troops searched for tunnels used to smuggle weapons. The officials said the house remained standing, despite the Palestinians claims that 42 people were left homeless.

Palestinians also claimed that the Hels family was not informed of the plans to demolish their home, and minutes before the bulldozers got to work, they were asked to leave and did not have time to take any possessions.

Blast at Gaza home of Islamic Jihad man kills three; IDF raids Gaza town
By THE JERUSALEM POST INTERNET STAFF, Sep. 13, 2002
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?
pagename=JPost/A/JPArticle/
ShowFull&cid=1031666172845

Three killed as explosion rocks Gaza home of Islamic Jihad leader

Palestinian sources reported Friday that a large explosion occurred at the home of an Islamic Jihad leader in the Gaza Strip, killing three people and wounding four, Israel Radio reported.

The militant, Hania Sharif, was not at home at the time of the blast.The three dead were brothers of Sharif, The four wounded were also members of his family according to Palestinian medical workers.

They gave no explanation for the blast, that destroyed much of the house.

In a separate incident a 17-year-old girl was lightly wounded by IDF fire after troops shot at Palestinian youths who were throwing stones at them.

A 40 kilogram explosive device was discovered near the southern Gaza Strip settlement of Morag, the bomb was successfully detonated by Border Police Sappers. A similar device exploded underneath an IDF tank earlier in the week killing one soldier.

Early Friday morning IDF tanks and troops swept through the Palestinian town of Rafah on the Egyptian border, killing a Palestinian, damaging houses and blowing up suspected weapons factories, residents and the military said.

Along with six metal workshops, 20 houses were badly damaged in the Israeli operation, Palestinians said, leaving families homeless.

In fierce gunbattles, a gunman from the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, linked to Yasser Arafat's Fatah movement, was killed and six other people were injured, Palestinian doctors said.

Khalid Abdullah, 34, said his house was destroyed. "I took my 5 children and my wife and we spent all night in the street," he said.

Palestinians said soldiers broke into the Fatah offices, destroyed equipment and caused considerable damage.

The Israeli military said soldiers blew up six workshops used to manufacture rockets and mortars.

Shortly after Israeli troops withdrew from Rafah at daybreak, a mortar shell exploded at a nearby Jewish settlement, Israel Radio reported.

As they pulled back, an Israeli tank ran into an armored personnel carrier, lightly injuring eight soldiers, the military said.

Israeli forces were also on the move in two places in the West Bank.

Soldiers entered the town of Tubas in the northern part of the West Bank early Friday, the Israeli military said, and were arresting terror suspects. Residents said the soldiers took over a building and made arrests.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report)

Posted by David Melle
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