News Brief

(IsraelNN.com) Municipal heads from seven southern communities – including Sderot, Ashkelon and Netivot -- sent a letter of outrage to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert on Tuesday demanding he take action against the rocket-launching terrorists in Gaza.

"Until today we showed restraint, waited patiently, bit our lips, sounded warnings, calmed our residents and sustained attacks quietly – but no more," read the letter.  "We have watched with concern the ongoing erosion of our residents' social, national, and mental strength; some carry mental traumas and suffer from shock and anxiety, others have had their limbs severed … and some have joined the family of the bereaved."

The municipal leaders met Sunday to coordinate efforts to fight the constant threat of attacks against their communities. On Monday, representatives of 21 Gaza Belt kibbutzim did the same.