Israeli forces ended a bloody weeklong operation in the Gaza town of Beit Hanoun early Tuesday, leaving behind a swath of destroyed homes, uprooted trees and streets muddied with sewage water from pipes destroyed by tanks and bulldozers. Nearly 50 Palestinians, most of them militants, and an Israeli soldier were killed in the offensive designed to curb Palestinian rocket fire on Israeli towns. But hours after the troops pulled out, militants began firing rockets again from a field in the town. There were no reports of injuries, but eight Palestinians were killed in clashes in nearby areas, including three killed in a tank strike on a lawmaker's home. The army said it uncovered many weapons and arrested dozens of militants in the operation. Forces took up new positions outside the town, and did not leave the Gaza Strip completely, the military said.
| "If I was against the rockets, now I will encourage people to launch rockets from every spot, from everywhere because rockets are not a pretext for what is going on here," Yazgi said. "This is an act of terror." |
Khalil Yazgi, 45, looked on as children and women picked through the rubble of the four-story structure that had been home to his extended family of 50. All that remained was a staircase and the exposed rooms of an apartment. "If I was against the rockets, now I will encourage people to launch rockets from every spot, from everywhere because rockets are not a pretext for what is going on here," Yazgi said. "This is an act of terror."