|
IDF strikes at founder of Qassam Brigades...
An Israeli air force F-16 blew up a house belonging to a Hamas leader early Tuesday, killing at least 11 people and wounding 100 others including the Shehadeh is the commander of the Izzadine el-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas. He's one of the guys they have to take out... The house belonged to Shehadeh, founder of the military wing of Hamas, known as Izzadine el-Qassam, in Gaza and the West Bank, security officials said. Shehadeh's wife and three of their children were killed, said Hamas spokesman Ismail Haniyeh. Too bad. They'll probably have nice funerals. Maybe Pop shoulda found another line of work... Announcements on loudspeakers in Gaza said Shehadeh was wounded. And the Israeli military confirmed that Shehadeh was the target and said he was hit. But his condition remained in doubt hours after the air strike. "We don't have any clear information yet," said Haniyeh at Gaza's Shifa hospital, where the casualties were taken. "Some sources said he is alive, some sources say he had the honor of becoming a martyr." Jerusalem Post reports he's alive. Hopefully he's maimed pretty bad, though. We can always hope... Further adding to the uncertainty, a list of 11 dead released by the hospital did not include his name or those of his family. The list included two babies, ages 2 months and 18 months, six children ages 3 to 11, and three adults. We always hate to see those kinds of casualties. Little kids haven't done anything to deserve that kind of treatment. But given the Paleostinians' tactics, I have a hard time dredging up any real indignation. The little Israeli kids haven't done anything to deserve it, either. Sorry. Hamas threatened to strike back. "We will avenge the blood of the martyrs," it said in a statement. Yeah, yeah. They've been "avenging the blood of martyrs." That's why F16s are rocketing their commanders' houses... The Palestinian Authority denounced the Israeli strike and called for international intervention to "stop these massacres." That's predictable, too. They probably have that statement on tape... Palestinian officials said at least 11 people died and more than 100 were wounded in the attack. The identities of the casualties and seriousness of the injuries weren't immediately available. Earlier, officials said 12 had died. This might be serious enough to fire up the International Hand-Wringers' Association. They should start nattering any time now... Posted by: Fred Pruitt 2002-07-22 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=5885 |