Kassam Rockets Claim Another Victim

 

Prayers accompanied Ella Abukasis as she left the world this morning, the latest victim of Palestinian Kassam terror campaign, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. Abukasis, 17, died at 9:00 a.m. at the Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba. She was critically wounded when a Kassam rocket exploded as she and her siblings were returning from a Bnei Akiva youth group meeting in Sderot last Saturday. Her 11-year-old brother, Tamir, was also wounded in the attack, as shrapnel lodged in his head. He was spared a worse fate when his sister dove to protect him after hearing the warning siren. "She protected him with her body, and now her blood stains are on his pillowcase. It was a miracle that he survived," said Ella's father. Despite her serious condition, Ella's family refused to give up their hope. Even after the doctors pronounced her brain dead Tuesday, the prayers continued outside her hospital room. There was a constant flow of visitors, both friends and family.

 

 

Hamas recognizes 1967 borders for first time

 

Hamas has distributed a document outlining a joint Palestinian leadership program in which the organization, for the first time in its existence, unequivocally recognizes the 1967 borders and adopts the main principle guiding Fatah: the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital, HAARETZ reported. The document, which proposes that Hamas work with Fatah and other Palestinian organizations, is a combination of internal documents prepared by Hamas over the last two years. The new version of the document was published after meetings between Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas with Gazan Hamas leaders Mahmoud al-Zahar, Ismail Haniya and Said al-Siam this week. One of the principles proposed by Hamas for a joint leadership is "a commitment to ending the occupation and establishment of an independent, fully sovereign Palestinian state, whose capital is Jerusalem." Until now, the organization leaders had issued similar statements about agreeing in principle to cease-fires or a long-term hudna, but it has never delivered an official document to other factions, starting with Fatah, in which they de facto recognize the political principles of Fatah. The proposal also calls for improved relations with the world in general and the west in particular.

 

However, the article also emphasizes the "legitimacy of the armed struggle, the political struggle and all the jihadist means that the Palestinian people used and uses to achieve freedom and independence, concentrating all the efforts to condemn the occupation in all its forms in Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan, and every centimeter occupied by foreign forces." The proposal is considered a "covenant of honor" meant to formulate "a general national policy" for the Palestinians. Abbas finalized the document in the wake of heavy pressure on Hamas leaders during their meeting Tuesday night in Gaza City.

 

Abbas: PA to deploy forces in southern Gaza within two days

 

Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said in a statement Friday that the PA will deploy security forces in the southern Gaza Strip within two days HAARETZ reported. An agreement reached Thursday approved a deployment in the northern Gaza Strip alone, but the parties were said to be discussing further PA deployments in other parts of the strip. The PA completed the deployment of security forces in the northern Gaza Strip on Friday, according to the estatement issued by Abbas. Palestinian security sources said around 2,000 paramilitary police officers were assigned to border towns Beit Hanun and Beit Lahia and other parts of northern Gaza, in an effort to prevent rocket and mortar attacks on Israeli targets. "Our orders are clear: to control these areas and to stop attacks," said Ismail al-Dahdouh, a senior Palestinian officer, after briefing a group of 100 security personnel.

 

In response to the deployment, Vice Premier Shimon Peres told Israel Radio that Mahmoud Abbas' "initial steps are very impressive." The deployment, which was approved Thursday by Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz, was coordinated with Israel to ensure that Israeli forces did not mistake the policemen for terrorists and open fire. The agreement states that the two forces will maintain a distance of a few hundred meters between them. The relative quiet in northern Gaza continued Thursday. For the second day in a row, no Qassams were fired at Sderot. The IDF attributes this quiet both to the PA's efforts - over the last 24 hours, Palestinian policemen have deployed in force in several cities and towns in Gaza where no agreement with the IDF was necessary - and to the Muslim holiday of Id al-Adha. Palestinian sources also cited both of these factors as contributing to the quiet.

 

 

US Security men arrive to learn Israeli techniques

 

A top-level delegation of 17 US law enforcement, fire and medical emergency personnel arrived to Israel on Wednesday at the start of a seven-day visit sponsored by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) aimed at learning from Israel's experience in dealing with security and attacks with mass casualties, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. Inspired by the needs arising after the 9/11 attacks, the aim of the visit is to study safety and security at airports and shipping ports and learn how the emergency services here cope with such incidents. "For approximately a year I have been having my staff work on the opportunity to come to Israel to find out how you do security; how you have dealt with terrorist threats in the past and the things that you have learned," Anthony Batts, Long Beach, California chief of police said. "Since September 11, we have been moving from our traditional law enforcement to security and the truth is we don't have an expertise in it and so we are coming here to gather that expertise to better serve and protect our communities," he said. "When you take a look at a terrorist action, they are trying to harm as many people as they can. Israelis have shown and demonstrated constantly their ability to get to a scene, have a unified command structure and make sure they take care of the patients and victims of those incidents," he added.-IsraelLine.