Subscribe to Print Edition | Sun., March 02, 2008 Adar1 25, 5768 | | Israel Time: 02:44 (EST+7) web haaretz.com   Back to Homepage Rosner's Domain Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Advertising Books Arts & Leisure Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File

Rocket barrage slams Ashkelon; Israel intensifies strikes on Gaza By Yuval Azoulay, Avi Issacharoff and Yoav Stern, Haaretz Correspondents and Agencies Tags: Gaza, Ashkelon The escalating fighting between Israel and Hamas peaked yesterday with a direct hit by a long-range rocket on a home in the port city of Ashkelon and the killing of at least 18 Palestinians in air strikes. These included five boys and a six-month-old baby. Israeli military analysts say that as Ashkelon becomes a permanent target of Hamas missile attacks, an Israeli ground offensive is becoming inevitable and likely to occur sooner rather than later. After a dense barrage of rockets yesterday, fired by Hamas militants against Sderot, and the recent killing of a man at Sapir College, the Israel Defense Forces intensified its air attacks against Palestinian gunmen in the Gaza Strip. Hamas sources claimed to have fired 82 rockets since Wednesday, 51 of them at Sderot. Advertisement Also yesterday, a much-anticipated IDF ground offensive seemed to move one step closer with Defense Minister Ehud Barak declaring that such an operation "was a real likelihood." Early yesterday evening, a Katyusha-type rocket struck a building in Ashkelon, crashing through the roof of an apartment building and slicing through three floors. No casualties were reported. In another Grad-missile attack on Ashkelon, a 17-year-old girl was lightly hurt and several other people were treated for shock. The Color Red alert system will be activated in Ashkelon today. A senior Israeli security official said that the rockets fired into Ashkelon have been Iranian-made imports, with a range of about 22 kilometers, but some locally made rockets have fallen on the southern outskirts of the city. The missiles, known as Grads, are taken apart, smuggled into Gaza through tunnels, and reassembled. But Hamas has only a limited supply, the source said. Earlier in the day the IDF air offensive was intense, targeting Hamas positions, Palestinian government buildings, and rocket-launching crews. In one attack, five boys were killed near the town of Jabalya as they played soccer. An IDF spokesperson said the aircraft targeted militants who were in the process of firing rockets at Israel. "We are at the height of the battle," Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in Tokyo, where he met U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is scheduled to visit Israel and the Palestinian Authority next week. Rice said that "the issue is that the attacks - rocket attacks - need to stop." Olmert appeared to suggest that a major Israeli ground operation against militants in the Gaza Strip was not imminent, saying Israel's fight against them was a "long process" and it had "no magic formula" to halt frequent rocket attacks. Olmert's statements appeared to be echoed by Public Security Minister Avi Dichter, who visited Sderot yesterday. Dichter rejected proposals to reoccupy the Gaza Strip, calling them "populist ideas which I don't agree with, and in my opinion, no intelligent person does either." However, Israel's Foreign Ministry spokesman later said the violence "may leave us no choice" but to send troops back in, two and a half years after Israel ended its occupation of Gaza. Defense Minister Barak told his security chiefs during a meeting yesterday that an offensive is a definite option. "The major ground operation is real and tangible. We are not afraid of it," Barak said, according to sources taking part in the meeting. Barak also told Rice and other Foreign Ministers of the Quartet in phone conversations that Israel would step up its response to the rocket fire, but a ground offensive wasn't imminent. The latest spike in violence began Wednesday, when five Iranian-trained Hamas militants, including two rocket masterminds, were killed in an Israeli air strike in southern Gaza. In retaliation, Hamas fired dozens of Qassam rockets as well as longer-range Iranian-made Grad rockets. Nabil Abu Rudainah, a spokesman for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, said in a statement that Israel's military actions "meant only one thing: the Israeli government ... aims to destroy the peace process". Olmert acknowledged the threat that "the continuous shooting of Qassam rockets against uninvolved, innocent civilians" pose a threat to stability, but vowed to hold his regular meetings with Abbas. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riyad al-Malki, speaking in East Jerusalem, said: "These stupid missiles being launched - firecrackers, but at the end they have killed Israeli civilians - we condemn this, clearly, openly, straightforwardly. "But at the same time, we condemn all the Israeli incursions into Gaza, killing Palestinian civilians, destroying their houses, preventing them from having a normal life," he said. Hamas officials struck a defiant tone yesterday. "We will never have equipment comparable to our enemy, but we are working all the time to have enough to make any aggression a regrettable adventure for the enemy," said Abu Obeida, a spokesman for the Hamas military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassam. In Tokyo, visiting Olmert said that Israel will go after the militants. We will reach out for the terrorists and we will attack and we will try to stop them, he said. Rice, who briefly met with Olmert in Tokyo, said Hamas rocket attacks need to stop, but also expressed concern for the humanitarian situation in Gaza and urged calm on all sides. Israel's public security minister, Avi Dichter, visited Sderot on Thursday, but was forced to cut short a news conference when an air-raid siren went off and his guards rushed him to a concrete shelter. Before Dichter arrived in the town, two people were hurt by rocket fire, including one of his bodyguards. Dichter told reporters he had no quick solution for the rocket problem, but rejected suggestions of opening a dialogue with Hamas. Israel considers Hamas a terrorist group. Bookmark to del.icio.us   Power to the people Egypt plans to provide all of Gaza's electricity, to wean dependency on Israel. Calculated escalation Hamas has been trying for some time to create a balance of deterrence with Israel.

Today Online 2 IDF soldiers, 61 Palestinians die in Gaza clashes Responses: 595 Barak: Hamas will pay for its escalation in the south Responses: 467 Analysis: Uncompromising Hamas is in trouble Responses: 244 Bradley Burston: True Islam will spell defeat for the Jihadists Responses: 126 When McCain and Obama face off, Israel may find itself in the eye of the storm Responses: 127 More Headlines 01:42 2 IDF soldiers, 61 Palestinians die in Gaza clashes 00:12 5 hurt in Ashkelon as close to 50 rockets hit southern Israel 00:15 PA suspends peace talks with Israel over Gaza violence 00:48 Family and friends gather to pay respects to fallen IDF soldiers 00:17 Meshal: Gaza is 'real holocaust,' armed resistance only option 00:18 Vice Premier: Reoccupying Gaza will hurt Israel more than help it 00:19 ANALYSIS / Gaza raids met by loud silence from the Arab world 08:38 Ban: Hezbollah hindering talks on prisoner swap 22:40 N.Y. Plaza Hotel, co-owned by Israeli and Saudi groups, reopens doors 20:27 Lebanese TV: Saudi, Kuwait urge nationals to leave Lebanon 07:53 Israeli tennis star Peer upset in semifinals of Memphis tourney Previous Editions Select Day 29 feb 28 feb 27 feb 26 feb 25 feb 24 feb 22 feb 21 feb 20 feb 19 feb 18 feb 17 feb

Special Offers Advertisement Free the Palestinians from: Corrupt Kleptocracy, Tyrannical Theocracy, Abysmal Anarchy Long-term Israel programs MASA is your gateway. More programs. More grants. NEW! Dan Boutique Jerusalem Hotel Hip Dan Hotel in Jerusalem. Attractive Introductory Rates 7589 rockets fired so far HELP US TO HELP THEM Marina Royale Herzelia Pituach Your Luxurious Suite While Staying in Israel Fattal Hotel Chain Perfectly located hotels on best resorts of Israel. ISRAEL BONDS Build Israel Israel bonds - a multi-purpose way to celebrate Israel's 60th Dead Sea Salt Beauty and skin care from the Dead Sea. Coupon code HAARETZ for 10% off! Eldan Rent a Car Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on all online reservations Junkyard Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt

Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Underground | Site rules |

Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.

© Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved