Israel Fires Rockets at Gaza, Warns of "Wider Action"

[Purveyor]

Israel aimed air strikes at three locations in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, after mortar fire from Gaza wounded an Israeli man on Wednesday.

That sort of response is typical, but an Israeli general's comments on the matter were not.

According to local media reports, Gen. Gaby Ashekenazi told troops "the situation on the Gaza Strip border is fragile these days" and warned them to prepare for heavier fighting.

"We may need to be prepared for wider action. The next round will be big and it needs to end in a way that leaves no doubt who won," he said. "We are significantly stronger than the other side."

http://slatest.slate.com/id/2277457/

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6B826O20101209

[oberliner]

1. Militant mortar shell from Gaza wounds Israeli

GAZA (Reuters) – A mortar shell fired by militants in the Gaza Strip wounded an Israeli man at an agricultural community close to the border between the two territories late on Wednesday, the Israeli military said.

An army spokeswoman said Gaza militants fired about five mortar rounds and that the wounded man was hit by fragments from one of them. He was ferried to hospital in Beersheba by helicopter and his wounds were not life-threatening.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20101208/ts_nm/us_palestinians_israel_gaza_3

The above article has more information about the Palestinian mortar attack against Israel that came before the Israeli action identified in the OP.

[azurnoir]

2. Airstrikes on Gaza overnight (retaliation for Israeli man being wounded)

Israeli warplanes launched air strikes on three separate targets in Gaza. There were no injuries reported.

Palestinian sources said the airstrikes targeted two areas in the middle of Gaza. The first, the Al-Qassam area near the electricity company while the other was around the police headquarters in the village.

The third target was the Tunis school east of the Az-Zaytoun neighborhood of Gaza City. The school canceled classes for the day.

http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=340331

for an 'overview' of the situation from 11/19/10

Israeli air strikes hit two Gaza towns

Rocket fire from Gaza has dropped sharply since Israel's devastating 22-day offensive in December 2008.

In the past 18 months one person in Israel, a Thai farm worker, has been killed by a rocket fired from Gaza.

According to Israeli Defence Force figures, 180 rockets and mortars have been fired into Israel by militants in 2010.

The United Nations says that in 2010, 55 Palestinians, including 22 civilians, have been killed by Israeli military action in Gaza.

The UN says over 200 Palestinians have been injured in the same period

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-11795966

[oberliner]

3. From an even broader "overview" of the situation

Attacks began in 2001. Since then, more than 8,600 rockets have hit southern Israel, nearly 6,000 of them since Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip in August 2005. The range of the rockets has increased over time. The original Qassam rocket has a range of about 10 km (6 miles) but more advanced rockets, including versions of the old Soviet Grad or Katyusha have hit Israeli targets 40 km (25 miles) from Gaza.

http://wapedia.mobi/en/Palestinian_rocket_attacks_on_Israel

[azurnoir]

5. 1919 Palstinians in Gaza have been killed by IDF actions since 2004

1/3 to 1/2 of those were civilians it should be noted that I used the lower number for OCL that being 1166 rather than the higher 1417 and that is just from this section of your link

Attacks have been carried out by all Palestinian armed groups, <4> and, prior to the 2008-2009 Gaza War, were consistently supported by most Palestinians, <5> <6> <7> <8> though the stated goals have been mixed. The attacks, widely condemned for targeting civilians, have been designated as terrorism by United Nations, European Union and Israeli officials, and are defined as war crimes by human rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch.

Defenses constructed specifically to deal with the weapons include fortifications for schools and bus stops as well as an alarm system named Red Color. A system to intercept short-range rockets is being developed.

The attacks were a stated cause of the Gaza blockade, Operation Cast Lead (Dec 27, 2008 - Jan 21, 2009) and other Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip, including Operation Rainbow (May, 2004) and Operation Days of Penitence (2004), Operation Summer Rains (2006), Operation Autumn Clouds (2006), and Operation Hot Winter (2008).

[oberliner]

7. Link?

Let me guess - rhymes with Pikipedia?

[azurnoir]

9. it was from the link you provided in #3

I said as much in my post

ETA those numbers are only from the 6 military operations named the casualties 'in between' those are not counted

[oberliner]

10. Thanks for that

What do you make of those numbers?

[azurnoir]

11. There is a relatively high casualty rate among Palestinians

eta been 'distracted' explanation here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x9755466

[Violet_Crumble]

4. Thanks for posting that overview, Az. Things don't happen in a vacuum n/t

[oberliner]

6. Amen to that

See above for even more context.

[Violet_Crumble]

8. The 'If it doesn't work, keep doing it again and again' rule is being used here n/t