A loud explosion rocked the area early Friday morning. Later reports said the missile landed in an open field near a kibbutz. No one was injured and no damage was reported in the attack.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz both said yesterday in speeches at an Air Force base in southern Israel that the IDF would begin to respond to the attacks.
Olmert’s speech was a collection of mixed messages, however, and Peretz’ speech contradicted comments made by Olmert.
The Prime Minister said that Israel’s policy of restraint still stands, but warned that the IDF “will not hesitate to resume targeted strikes” if the rocket attacks do not stop. He also said that the IDF would only act against terrorists who endangered Israeli lives.
The contradiction appeared to be clarified by an earlier statement by his office that said soldiers had permission to attack the terrorists who fire the rockets, but only if they are identified shortly before they launched the Kassams.
The statement said that “instructions have been given to the security forces to take pinpointed action against the launching cells.” In the next sentence, it said, “Simultaneously, Israel will continue to preserve the ceasefire and will act vis-?-vis the Palestinian Authority in order for them to take immediate action to stop the shooting of Kassams.”
The Defense Minister was more assertive in his speech, promising that rocket attacks would not go unpunished, period. “We will strike not only the Kassam rocket squads,” he vowed, “but terrorist infrastructure as well.”
Peretz said the limited truce that went into effect on November 26th did not give terrorists who had chosen to ignore the agreement the right to attack western Negev communities without impunity.
“Alongside our effort to maintain the ceasefire, we cannot keep up a policy of restraint and let terrorists do whatever they want and hurt Israel’s citizens,” he told the NRG news service.
Knesset members and IDF officials have called for an end to the policy of restraint in the face of the repeated violations of the ceasefire that it is supposed to uphold. The truce has been violated more than 60 times in the past month.
Attacks this week severely injured two 14 year old boys in Sderot, and struck a strategic facility in the southern port city of Ashkelon.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz both said yesterday in speeches at an Air Force base in southern Israel that the IDF would begin to respond to the attacks.
Olmert’s speech was a collection of mixed messages, however, and Peretz’ speech contradicted comments made by Olmert.
The Prime Minister said that Israel’s policy of restraint still stands, but warned that the IDF “will not hesitate to resume targeted strikes” if the rocket attacks do not stop. He also said that the IDF would only act against terrorists who endangered Israeli lives.
The contradiction appeared to be clarified by an earlier statement by his office that said soldiers had permission to attack the terrorists who fire the rockets, but only if they are identified shortly before they launched the Kassams.
The statement said that “instructions have been given to the security forces to take pinpointed action against the launching cells.” In the next sentence, it said, “Simultaneously, Israel will continue to preserve the ceasefire and will act vis-?-vis the Palestinian Authority in order for them to take immediate action to stop the shooting of Kassams.”
The Defense Minister was more assertive in his speech, promising that rocket attacks would not go unpunished, period. “We will strike not only the Kassam rocket squads,” he vowed, “but terrorist infrastructure as well.”
Peretz said the limited truce that went into effect on November 26th did not give terrorists who had chosen to ignore the agreement the right to attack western Negev communities without impunity.
“Alongside our effort to maintain the ceasefire, we cannot keep up a policy of restraint and let terrorists do whatever they want and hurt Israel’s citizens,” he told the NRG news service.
Knesset members and IDF officials have called for an end to the policy of restraint in the face of the repeated violations of the ceasefire that it is supposed to uphold. The truce has been violated more than 60 times in the past month.
Attacks this week severely injured two 14 year old boys in Sderot, and struck a strategic facility in the southern port city of Ashkelon.