3 killed in Gaza airstrike; IDF fires tank shells on field

“An IAF airstrike targeted a minivan belonging to a Hamas militant in northern Gaza City on Friday, killing three people and wounding 12, Palestinian hospital officials said.”

The IDF said the aircraft struck the vehicle which was carrying weapons and Kassams, causing secondary explosions.

Separately, Israeli tanks fired five shells near a housing project in the northern Gaza town of Jebaliya, slightly wounding five people, according to hospital officials.
Officials said it fired tank shells at an open field in northern Gaza after identifying a rocket launch from that area and wanted to prevent further firings.

Palestinian security officials reported that an IAF airstrike targeted an empty Hamas school in northeast Gaza City on Friday night.

Rescue workers said one person was injured. The IDF made no comment.

Well, that’s what happens if you start firing dozens of rockets at Israel. It’s called retaliation. If Mexico was firing rockets at El Paso Texas every day, you can bet on it that the US would act.

That being said, one can ask the question whether it is smart for Israel to do this now. I’d say no. The reason: the Palestinians are fighting each other. Hamas wants to draw attention away from the Palestinian civil warunrest. It wants to unite the Palestinians / look like the good guy. If Israel attacks, the Palestinians will forget about Hamas and Fatah, they will focus solely on Israel and, once again, blame Israel for everything.

And not just the Palestinians, the world will respond like that. If one pays attention to the reports in the Western media, at least in Europe, the MSM frequently forgets to mention that Israel only attacks Hamas because Hamas is attacking Israel constantly. It is depicted as just being a mess, not caused by one group specifically. And then, we see Israeli tanks entering and occupying Gaza: Israel the aggressor. Nonsense of course, but good propaganda for Hamas and Fatah.

Israel should stay out of it right now: it has to secure its people by building shelters and let Fatah and Hamas kill each other.

Meanwhile, Israeli Defense Minister Amir Peretz “ordered the IDF to continue with its current policy of pinpointed airstrikes against Hamas terrorists and Kassam infrastructure.”