Six mortar rockets were launched against Jewish towns in Gush Katif this morning. The towns of Gadid, Atzmona, and N\'vei Dekalim were hit in two separate attacks. In N\'vei Dekalim, the largest town in Gush Katif, two people were treated for shock, one home was damaged, and town residents were instructed to enter bomb shelters and reinforced safe rooms. In retaliation, IDF forces fired six tank shells at terrorist positions in the PA city of Khan Yunis. Two grenades and a small bomb were hurled at an IDF force during the night near Rafiach; again, no one was hurt.
One of the mortars fell on the home of Gaza Coast Deputy Mayor Yitzchak Iliah, but in a talk with Arutz-7 today he exuded only optimism and calm: \"Our house was damaged a little - holes in the doors and walls, burns here and there, nothing serious; everything will be fine. We already had some friends over for a little thanksgiving ceremony, and it\'s OK. Our Sages taught that the Land of Israel is acquired through suffering, and we will continue to live here and build here. Just this morning, we were working on the plans for the development of 22 new plots of land...\"
Iliah was asked whether he attended the meeting on Friday with Prime Minister Sharon with other local leaders: \"Yes, I was at the meeting. The problem was that we didn’t hear anything [specific]. We\'re waiting for the old Sharon, the one from 1973, the one who uprooted the terrorists\' nests from Gaza in the early 1970\'s. We don\'t say that he should go into Gaza and start smashing everything, because we have no interest in ruining people\'s lives, and especially when they are our neighbors with whom we would like to live in peace. But he received 63% of the vote because he promised peace and security. OK, I can understand why there is no peace, because there are no negotiations under fire - but he still has to bring security. If he\'s taking it slowly in order to really deal with the problem from the source, then fine, we\'re willing to wait a bit longer and in the meantime we will pray to G-d. But if it\'s because he simply doesn\'t know what to do, then I think we have a problem... We have to know that we must speak with the Palestinians in the language that they understand...\"
One of the mortars fell on the home of Gaza Coast Deputy Mayor Yitzchak Iliah, but in a talk with Arutz-7 today he exuded only optimism and calm: \"Our house was damaged a little - holes in the doors and walls, burns here and there, nothing serious; everything will be fine. We already had some friends over for a little thanksgiving ceremony, and it\'s OK. Our Sages taught that the Land of Israel is acquired through suffering, and we will continue to live here and build here. Just this morning, we were working on the plans for the development of 22 new plots of land...\"
Iliah was asked whether he attended the meeting on Friday with Prime Minister Sharon with other local leaders: \"Yes, I was at the meeting. The problem was that we didn’t hear anything [specific]. We\'re waiting for the old Sharon, the one from 1973, the one who uprooted the terrorists\' nests from Gaza in the early 1970\'s. We don\'t say that he should go into Gaza and start smashing everything, because we have no interest in ruining people\'s lives, and especially when they are our neighbors with whom we would like to live in peace. But he received 63% of the vote because he promised peace and security. OK, I can understand why there is no peace, because there are no negotiations under fire - but he still has to bring security. If he\'s taking it slowly in order to really deal with the problem from the source, then fine, we\'re willing to wait a bit longer and in the meantime we will pray to G-d. But if it\'s because he simply doesn\'t know what to do, then I think we have a problem... We have to know that we must speak with the Palestinians in the language that they understand...\"