27-Dec-08: Quiet and not-so-quiet deaths

As Israeli forces take decisive action today against the terrorist regime of Hamas-ruled Gaza, it's worth pausing for a moment to notice a pair of deaths that will go mostly unmarked. This is one small example of what it means to live in a terrorist-controlled area.

"A projectile fired by Palestinians fell short of its target in Israel on Friday, striking a house in northern Gaza and killing two schoolgirls... A rocket apparently fired by Palestinians on Friday killed the two Palestinians aged five and 13, Palestinian medics said. None of Gaza's militant factions claimed responsibility for the deadly attack on the house in Beit Lahiya. Gaza Health Ministry official Dr. Moiaya Hassanain identified the two victims as 5-year-old Hanin Abu Khoussa and her 12-year-old cousin, Sabah Abu Khoussa. Three other young people were wounded, Hassanain said. Hamas police said they were investigating the cause of the blast in Beit Lahiya village in northern Gaza, which medics said seemed to be due to a rocket aimed at Israel that had misfired. Gaza militants frequently fire rockets at Israel from the same area."

A longer report is here.

The deaths-by-Qassam losses are not limited to innocent Gazan Palestinian Arab children. An Israeli home in the town of Netivot, southern Israel, was struck earlier today by a "grad" missile fired by the Gaza-based terrorists. An Israeli civilian, 58-year-old Beber Vaknin, was killed inside the home, and four other innocents suffered moderate to serious injuries. JPost reports that "over 80 rockets and mortar shells struck areas throughout the western Negev... a rocket hit a house in the community of Mivtahim, seriously wounding one person and lightly wounding another. A Magen David Adom team treated the wounded at the scene."

Israel, as most people know by know, mounted a lightning strike on multiple Hamas installations earlier today, causing colossal damage to property and life, and neutralizing a considerable part of what the terrorist regime is able to do. JTA, quoting Gazan sources, says "most of the dead were affiliated with the security forces, including Gaza City's police chief, although a number of the casualties were civilians. Hamas officials said at least 140 of the dead belonged to the terrorist group's militias."

There is no reason to think the terrorist regime and its powerful and capable backers are surrendering. They know the dark art of terror better than almost anyone anywhere. We can expect turbulent times. The price exacted by terrorism's practitioners is bound to continue to rise, with victims on all sides.