No physical injuries or property damage were reported.
The rocket is the first fired into Israel from Gaza today in what has become a status quo event since the deadly bus attack that left 8 Israelis dead ten days ago.. It was fired in spite of a ceasefire called by the terror groups over the weekend.
Last week two such cease-fires unilaterally declared by Hamas and Islamic Jihad were broken by their terror operatives firing rockets within hours of their implementation.
The last rocket fired from Gaza at Israel's south on Sunday night. It landed in an open area in the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council. No physical injuries or properly damages were reported.
Also Sunday, a Grad missile landed in the Bnei Shimon Regional Council not far from Beersheba. Once again, No physical injuries or properly damages were reported.
The radical Islamist Tawhid al-Jihad terror group took responsibility for the attacks.
Critics of the Netanyahu governments decision to maintain the airstrike-for-rocket-attack paradigm that has come to symbolize the security situation in the south say Israel cannot continue to rely on miracles to protect its citizens. Last week a 9-month old infant was injured by shrapnel in a Gaza rocket attack.
However, some analysts suggest the government is waiting to see how the security situation vis-a-vis the Palestinian Authority enclaves in Judea and Samaria develops following the PA statehood bid at the UN in September - as well as in the Sinai - before committing forces to a major operation.
Nonetheless, it is increasingly clear Israel's current strategic stance on Gaza has proven ineffective in stopping terror attacks on its citizens.
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| Weapons confiscated from Gaza smugglers |
Terror groups based in Gaza have acquired anti-aircraft and anti-tank rockets from Libya during its six-month civil war, Israeli officials told Reuters on Monday.
The officials said the weapons from Libya have enlarged but not significantly improved the arsenal in Gaza. They emphasized that while the rebellion against Muammar Qaddafi has stirred concern abroad about the fate of Libya’s chemical weapons stockpiles, there is no indication Hamas or other Gaza-based terror groups have sought these.
They noted, however, that an inflow of SA-7 anti-aircraft missiles and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) has been detected as entering Gaza. One official described an overland supply route that opened up between eastern Libya, after it fell to the rebels, and the Gaza Strip via Egypt.
“We've been seeing more SA-7s and RPGs coming across,” the official told Reuters, adding: “It’s not a major qualitative enhancement for them.”
Another Israeli official told the news agency that “thousands” of the weapons had reached Gaza in recent months but did not provide figures on how many had originated in Libya.
Smuggling of weapons meant for Gaza terror groups is a major concern for Israel, particularly with the anarchy in the Sinai Peninsula and the infiltration of terror groups into the region following the fall of Hosni Mubarak.
Egypt, which has been attempting to crackdown on terror groups in the Sinai, deployed 1,500 more troops in the region on Monday following an agreement with Israel to increase the number of Egyptian troops in the peninsula’s areas B and C.
The entire area is on alert, and the IDF has beefed up its presence in the south amid a report that Islamic Jihad terrorists from Gaza are planning to attack from the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.
Last night, in response to reports of a serious car accident on the road toward a arab area in Judea and Samaria, IDF paramedics sped off in order to aid the injured. Their mission came to an abrupt halt, however, when they were attacked; a Molotov cocktail was thrown at the ambulance they were riding in. Undeterred, they continued on their mission: to provide emergency care to all residents of Judea and Samaria, whether Israeli or arab.
