Rocket Man...Deceased

This terrorist marauder, Zuhair-al-Qaissi, sported a lovely head covering

Israel Kills Leader of Palestinian Militants behind Shalit Kidnapping

An Israeli airstrike on Friday killed Zuhair al-Qaissi [pictured], the top commander of the armed wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, a militant group in Gaza aligned with Hamas that was behind the abduction of Gilad Shalit.
(AP-Guardian-UK)


Israel's Pre-emptive Policy -Ron Ben-Yishai

According to intelligence information, Zuhair al-Qaissi personally planned a complex offensive which was to include infiltration from Sinai into Israel at several sites, the planting of explosive devices, and a possible abduction. Sinai-based attacks grant terror groups an advantage - they estimate that the IDF would not enter Egyptian territory in order to thwart such offensives.
(Ynet News)

 
Renewing Deterrence in Gaza -Yoav Limor

Over the last three years there has been a disturbing trend of shorter and shorter intervals between clashes in Gaza, as each round becomes more and more violent.
(Israel Hayom)


Escalation in Gaza Was Just a Matter of Time -Eyal Zisser

A conflagration with Gaza was just a matter of time. So long as the Hamas government allows active terrorist groups such as the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) and Islamic Jihad to carry out attacks, it will be impossible to preserve silence along the Gaza border.
(Israel Hayom)


Gaza Rocket Target Beersheba, Ashdod -Yaakov Lappin

Palestinian terrorists in Gaza continued to target Israel on Monday morning with rocket salvos directed at Beersheba and Ashdod. Some 17 rockets were fired at Israel, at least seven of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome rocket defense system.
(Jerusalem Post)


Gaza Rockets Strike Residential Beersheba -Gili Cohen, Avi Issacharoff & Yanir Yagna

Two Grad rockets struck Beersheba on Sunday afternoon, one hitting a school that was empty at the time and the other striking a parked car in a residential neighborhood. 15 homes were damaged.
(Ha'aretz)
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UPDATES:

Targeted Killings of Terror Leaders Are Moral  -Donniel Hartman

•Should we engage in pre-emptive, targeted assassinations, knowing full well the "cycle of violence" that will ensue?

•An essential part of our national ethos is to be pro-actively engaged in shaping our future, to determine our own destiny to the best of our ability. As a citizen of Israel I embrace the need to act and to attempt to proactively give us the security that we deserve.

•While Jewish tradition elevates the sanctity of life as one of its highest values and sees all of humanity as equal in value, it does not merely allow but obligates acts of self-defense. One cannot be committed to the sanctity of life in general without being committed to valuing the sanctity of one's own life. Self-defense is a higher moral expression than self-sacrifice. Our tradition teaches us, "When someone arises to kill you, pre-empt them, and kill them first."

•Targeted killings of known terrorist leaders, those with blood on their hands and the self-expressed desire and capacity to spill more blood, are not morally ambiguous, but rather acts of "tikkun olam," repairing the world.

•Evil exists, and it is our responsibility as Israelis and moral duty as Jews to see this evil, and do everything in our power to limit it and not allow its terrorist intent to rule our neighborhood.
(Ynet News)
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The Most Stressful Day of My Life -Keren Dahan

When the siren went off on Sunday afternoon, my mother, sisters and I ran to the bomb shelter. There was an explosion. But when we wanted to exit the shelter, an even louder explosion was heard. Even the window in the bomb shelter, which was sealed tight, blew open from the force of the blast.

After we calmed down a bit, we walked out the shelter door. The sign at the entrance of our building had been blown off, the front yard was filled with shrapnel and the glass door leading to our porch was shattered. It was terrifying.
The writer is an 11th grader in Beersheba.
(Israel Hayom)
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Report from an "Asymmetrical" War -P. David Hornik

The moral asymmetry between Israel and its enemies has been strikingly on display in the latest flare-up between Gaza terror groups and Israeli forces. By Monday afternoon the Israeli air force had reportedly killed 19 terrorists in pinpoint strikes on Gaza targets - mostly rocket-launching crews - and two Palestinian civilians as collateral damage.

By contrast, the over 200 rockets fired from Gaza at Israel since Friday have been aimed solely at civilian targets. Most have been lobbed at cities - Ashkelon, Ashdod, and (my own) Beersheba - in the hope of killing and maiming as many men, women, and children as possible.
(American Spectator)
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