IDF Probe Continues Into The Explosion That Killed Seven Palestinian Civilians On Gaza Beach PM Olmert: 'IDF Is The Most Ethical Army In The World & Does Not Deliberately Target Civilians'
The explosion that killed seven Palestinians on the beach of Gaza has shocked Israel. Israelis were distressed by the possibility that an IDF shell had gone off target and wreaked havoc among the Ralia family that was enjoying a picnic.
Israel was stunned by the possibility that a stray IDF shell may have killed seven Palestinian civilians including several children on the Gaza Beach. But who bears ultimate responsibility for the explosion?
As the IDF enquiry continues, Defense Minister Amir Peretz says its still not clear if a stray Israeli shell or a wayward Palestinian rocket caused the carnage. But this is only part of the story, the truth about this tragedy is to be found elsewhere.
The background: In the summer of 2005, Israel evacuated all troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip. Rather than accepting the unilateral Israeli withdrawal as a launch pad to jump-start the Roadmap peace process, the Palestinians exploited the evacuated territory for launching more Qassam rockets into Israel. Since the Israeli pullout, Hamas, Fatah and the other terror groups have launched over 500 rockets at Israeli towns and villages. The IDF has reacted with counter-strikes by helicopter gun-ships, naval vessels and artillery and tank fire to suppress the rocket attacks on Israeli civilians. In addition, the IDF has eliminated a number of terror ringleaders through pinpoint targeted killings.
Last Friday, something went terribly wrong. The Ralia family was picnicking on the Gaza beach when an explosion killed the father and three children. A number of others were injured some seriously. In expressing his regret, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert declared the IDF was the most ethical army in the world, and never targeted civilians’. Near the home of IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz in Tel Aviv, Olmerts daughter Dana joined a left wing demonstration demanding a total Israel withdrawal from the West Bank as well. Defense Minister Peretz suspended all artillery fire and launched an immediate investigation. The initial findings indicated that an Israeli operation from the air or by sea was not to blame. IDF artillery had fired six shells, five of which were accounted for. The probe continues into where the sixth shell landed.
But might the disaster be the result of a stray Palestinian rocket? The homemade Qassams are notoriously inaccurate and it would not be the first time that one of them did not reach Israel but blew up killing Palestinians. A senior IDF officer said Palestinian terrorists use the Gaza beach for firing rockets at the Israeli port of Ashdod. Moreover, the Palestinians immediately gathered all the shrapnel and debris that might have identified the explosive charge. In addition, an initial check of the artillery log shows that the sixth Israeli shell in question was not fired at the time the Palestinians said the explosion occurred. The IDF enquiry is to be completed by Tuesday. A Palestinian boy, who was critically injured in the blast, is being treated at Soroka hospital in Beer-Sheva. Vowing revenge, Hamas has openly joined the other terror groups in launching rockets into Israel deliberating trying to kill and maim Israeli civilians. Their prime target is the town of Sderot that also happens to be the home of Defense Minister Peretz. On Sunday, a rocket scored a direct hit on a school critically wounding an elderly employee. The children, women and men of Sderot have been living with the Qassam nightmare since the start of the Palestinian intifada over five years ago. Since then, a number of them have been killed and injured.
Hamas now declares it will turn Sderot into a ghost town by driving out all its residents. The rain of Qassams is having a severe impact; many residents say they are fed up with living under the terror attacks. Parents are worried mainly about the effect on their children who are becoming traumatized by the rocket attacks and suffer nightmares.
Even if it transpires that a stray Israeli shell did kill the seven innocent Palestinians, does the ultimate responsibility lay with Israel? Or with the Palestinian terrorists who insist on waging bloodshed and violence while the Palestinian authorities do nothing to stop it?
Palestinian President Abbas has blamed Israel for the massacre of innocent Palestinians.
Question: If Mahmoud Abbas had acted responsibly and reined in the terrorists would there have been any Israeli shelling last Friday?