Gaza: Israeli Aid and Hamas Attacks

Israel is facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip while at the same time it is being attacked from that Hamas-controlled territory, supported Israel's Foreign Ministry Spokesman on Wednesday, April 16.

Early Wednesday morning, 16 April 2008, three Israeli soldiers were killed and three injured in a clash with terrorists near the security fence between Gaza and Israel. The event took place on the Gaza side of the fence, between the Nahal Oz fuel terminal and Kibbutz Beeri, when the Israeli force encountered a group of armed Palestinians close to the border. The Israel Defence Force routinely operates in this area to prevent terrorist infiltrations, sniper fire and Kassam rocket attacks. The incident occurred - apparently not coincidentally - exactly one week after the terrorist attack on the Nahal Oz fuel terminal, during which two Israel workers were murdered. The presence of the terrorists in that area is an indication that the threat from Gaza is not aimed only at Sderot, but also at the other approximately 10 Israeli communities near the border, which are also under daily threat. In a separate incident, during an IDF operation against terrorist infrastructure near the security fence in northern Gaza, Palestinian gunmen opened fire from within a mosque. The mosque had been used for storing a large amount of explosive devices and explosive substances. One IDF soldier was moderately wounded. Mortar bombs and anti-tank missiles were also fired at an Israeli force. Also on the 16th, all five crossings into Gaza for humanitarian aid (Karni, Sufa, Kerem Shalom, Nahal Oz and Erez) were open. These crossings supply Gaza with the necessities for daily life for the people of Gaza. 194 truckloads of humanitarian aid were transferred to Gaza. Israel is facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip while at the same time it is being attacked from that territory. The Foreign Ministry says Israel holds Hamas fully responsible for these attacks and their consequences.