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| Middle East |
| Israeli strike misses Islamic Jihad leader |
| 2003-10-20 |
| A missile strike by an Israeli warplane on a house in Gaza has wounded at least five Palestinians, but the apparent target of the attack escaped without injury. Palestinian witnesses say the missile slammed into a house next door to the home of senior Islamic Jihad leader Abdullah Shami. The Israeli army later issued a statement saying the target of the strike was not the home of Abdallah al-Shami but a weapons factory next door. At least five Palestinians, including two young children, were injured in the strike. Islamic Jihad was behind this month’s suicide bombing in Haifa which killed 21 people. |
| Posted by:Paul Moloney |
| #3 From the update on the post above, it appears they were targetting the workshop/arms warehouse - they attacked the pickup that loaded goods then fled |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-10-20 9:24:51 AM |
| #2 Did they target al-Shami and miss, or target a weapons factory? well given their recent accuracy, I'd suspect the latter. Also fits better with my sense of the current politics of the situation. If Arafats future is clouded, (by either ill health or internal Pal politics) as it appears, does it make sense to target the Hamas/IJ leadership NOW? Yes, weaken them prior to Arafats departure and the succession struggle, but not take on the political consequences of a high level assasination. I think thats the only explanation for Israeli policy SINCE the Haifa bombing (not targeting terr leaders) and policy at the beginning of the summer - now, unlike then, Arafat may actually be on the way out. |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2003-10-20 9:09:11 AM |
| #1 And fiftten rubber baby ducks were killed. |
| Posted by: Anonymous 2003-10-20 6:14:07 AM |