Gaza missile front

From DEBKAfile December 27, 2006, 11:44 AM (GMT+02:00)...

Iranian officers take command of Palestinian Gaza missile front. But Olmert ties IDF to pinpoint fire on missile crews after two Sderot schoolboys seriously hurt

The cabinet decision Wednesday ordered the IDF to stick to attacking missile crews and refrain from breaching the month-long “ceasefire,” in the course of which the Palestinians fired 70 missiles from Gaza at Israeli civilian locations. An Israeli appeal went out to the (non-functioning) Palestinian Authority to halt the six-year old barrage.

Translation by DEBKAfile’s military experts: Sderot and its neighbors will continue to live under daily missile harassment. Until the latest attack, the army was constrained on the prime minister’s order – and against its will - to hold its fire against the daily assaults, although they could clearly see the assailants in Gaza. Surgeons operated through Tuesday night to save the life of Adir Basad, aged 14, who was critically injured in all parts of his body by a falling missile outside his home in Sderot, the 8th fired in one day. His friend, Matan Cohen’s foot was smashed. Eight civilians suffered shock.

Our military sources report that the IDF does not accept the Iran-sponsored Jihad Islami’s claim to have shot the missile which wounded the schoolboys because since Monday, Dec. 25, two changes were detected in the Palestinian offensive: A new type of homemade missile called Al Buraq 2 (after the Western Wall Jewish shrine in Jerusalem), and a new unit, calling itself the Mujahiddin Brigades, identified by military experts as the first Palestinian terrorist unit set up by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ al Quds Brigades.

This group’s first action was to fire the new missiles at Kibbutz Nahal Oz Monday. They were diagnosed at first as mortars, but the fragments did not match any ordnance seen before. It was then discovered that the Mujahiddin Brigades units - consisting of Hamas, Jihad Islami, Fatah-al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and Popular Resistance Committees operatives - are commanded by an Iranian Revolutionary Guards officer.

Such direct Iranian command of front-line Palestinian missile units is another innovation; it did not occur even on the Hizballah side of the of July-August Lebanon war.

Monday, too, the Americans disclosed the capture in Baghdad of Iranian officers, members of the same RG al Quds Brigades, on another front line: against Iraqi and coalition forces. It looks as though the Islamic Republic has gone into action in Iraq and Gaza in reprisal for the tepid sanctions the UN Security Council imposed Saturday, Dec. 23, for its continuing pursuit of uranium enrichment.

...and from Ynet 12.27.06, 12:22 , by Ronny Sofer ....

MK Hendel: Only death of civilians will affect Olmert...

MK Zvi Hendel (National Union), a member of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, criticized Prime Minister Ehud Olmert 's decision to authorize only striking at cells launching Qassam rockets from Gaza.

"Apparently boys being mortally wounded in Sderot aren't enough for Olmert's cold tally of blood; only the death of civilians will move him from his arrogant apathy. Olmert is dangerous for Israel," Hendel said.

In an urgent security meeting Wednesday it was decided that Israel would act against the rocket cells while simultaneously maintaining the ceasefire and acting with the Palestinian Authority in the hopes that they will take action to prevent the rocket attacks emanating from their territory.

.... Head of the organization for the defense of Sderot Alon Davidi, who organized a protest rally in front of Peretz's house, said that "unfortunately only the severe injuries sustained by the teens forced the prime minister to act against the Qassam cells....We look forward to his disillusionment from the ceasefire, and for him to order a wide-scale operation against the terror groups. Failure to do so will cause more casualties..." ....