Gaza ablaze as terrorists fire rockets, attack checkpoints and army bases
By Israel Insider staff and partners  January 5, 2005
 
 
A Palestinian terrorist opened fire at the Erez checkpoint in Gaza as a group of Arab pilgrims were about to cross through on their way to Mecca for the annual Islamic haj. Some 400 pilgrims remained stuck at the checkpoint for several hours before returning home.

The army said the incident erupted after a Palestinian set off an explosive charge and threw grenades at an Israeli army officer, who shot and killed him. Three Palestinian police officers were wounded in the ensuing exchange of fire.

The attack was well-planned. The terrorist planted a bomb by the wall of the checkpoint's passageway, blowing open a large hole. He then crossed through it to the Israeli side, firing and throwing grenades at Israeli soldiers. An IDF force fired back, killing him.

The attack exploited the humanitarian considerations which Israel has made to accommodate pilgrims. To enable Arabs from Gaza to make the haj to Mecca, Israel opened an extra checkpoint in northern Gaza. The would-be pilgrims undergo a security check at Erez, in the northern Strip, and are then transported to the Philadelphi Route in southern Gaza, from where they can enter Egypt. The terrorist infiltrated the line of pilgrims.

Islamic Jihad and the Al-Aqsa Brigades assumed joint responsibility for the attack.

The IDF commented that the motivations for the attack included sabotaging co-existence between Israelis and Arabs. The army also noted that by "striking at the Palestinians' ability to earn a living, the terrorist organizations attempt to present Israel as responsible for [their] suffering."

Terrorist make a direct hit on IDF base
Later in the morning, Palestinian terrorists in Gaza fired two rockets into an Israeli army base in southern Israel, wounding 12 soldiers, one seriously, the army said.

Violence in Gaza has heated up in recent weeks, after a brief lull following the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in November.

Palestinian terrorists have attacked Jewish settlements with mortar fire and continued to lob homemade rockets from northern Gaza into southern Israel.

The army has responded with a series of deadly operations, including an offensive into northern Gaza early this week aimed at halting the rocket fire.

At nightfall Tuesday, Palestinian gunmen attacked an Israeli outpost east of Gaza City. In an exchange of fire, one of the attackers was killed, Palestinian hospital officials said.

After Israeli tank shells killed seven Palestinians in response to a mortar barrage on Tuesday, Mahmoud Abbas, the leading candidate in a Palestinian presidential election, issued his harshest denunciation of Israel.

Witnesses and relatives said the seven, all under 18, were working in a strawberry field outside the northern Gaza town of Beit Lahiya when terrorists fired the mortar rounds, wounding an Israeli. The militants fled, and the tank shells hit the young farmers.

Israel said some of the terrorists were hit, but Col. Avi Levy, the area commander, apologized for civilian casualties.

 

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