Tel-Chai Nation

The Hamas and Islamic Jihad - no doubt in revenge for Jerusalem's recognition - fired a heavy barrage of rockets at Israeli locations:

Over two dozen mortar shells were fired at Israel about 7 a.m. Tuesday by Islamic Jihad terrorists based in the Gaza Strip.

The Iron Dome anti-ballistic system intercepted mortar shells headed toward inhabited areas.

One man was slightly injured after shrapnel from one of the shells hit his hand.

The attack came as parents were beginning to send their children to school.

The volley of shells is being billed as the single-largest ballistic attack on Israel from Gaza since the 2014 Operation Protective Edge.

The Islamic Jihad threatened this week to respond to an IDF attack in Gaza in which three of its fighters were killed.

Oh, I have no doubt Jerusalem's also one of their excuses for this latest barbarism.

One of the shells landed just outside an empty kindergarten in the Eshkol region, less than an hour before students were due to arrive, a spokesperson for the community said.

The kindergarten — along with all other schools — was set to open as usual, despite the attack.

But for now it's bound to be dangerous to send the children to schools in this situation.

Justice minister Ayelet Shaked says it's possible the army could invade Gaza to deal with this:

Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked said Tuesday that security and political officials agreed “all options are on the table” with respect to the crisis in Gaza, including the possibility that Israel could re-occupy the coastal Strip.

Speaking to the Hebrew-Language Radio Darom, Shaked said it was a “miracle” that nobody was killed in a mortar strike on a kibbutz adjacent to Gaza Tuesday morning, adding that had the incident included Israeli fatalities, it could have led to war.

“Our reaction must be very strong,” Shaked said, “as if (Israeli) blood had been spilled. All options are on the table. We must seize the opportunity of this miracle to respond strongly.

Shaked explained that during security consultations in recent days, political leaders and military officers have “seen eye-to-eye” on the need to respond forcefully to cross-border attacks. The only consideration for the officials has been to ensure they make the “right move at the right time,” she said.

“Should we comprehensively ‘defeat’ Hamas? When you say that, it means bringing down the Hamas government, which would mean whatever it means.”

Asked whether that could include ordering the IDF to re-occupy the area, which Israel vacated in August 2005, Shaked said, “Yes. That includes (the possibility) that we might re-conquer the Strip. That option is definitely on the table. We have to face the truth,” she said.

And it makes no difference whether anyone died or not from the attack; they have to act in order to prevent the likelihood from happening, because it's entirely possible it could. We can't allow such tyrannical entities as Islamic Jihad and Hamas to continue reigning in Gaza any more than the PLO.

Labels: anti-americanism, anti-semitism, islam, Israel, Jerusalem, jihad, terrorism, United States, war on terror