Hamas Armed Wing Says it Launched 'Big Missile' Attack on Tel Aviv

[Cow Poke]

Hamas Armed Wing Says it Launched 'Big Missile' Attack on Tel Aviv

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Hamas Armed Wing Says it Launched 'Big Missile' Attack on Tel Aviv

Sunday, 26 May 2024 12:08 PM EDT

Hamas launched missiles at Tel Aviv on Sunday, setting off sirens in Israel's financial center for the first time in four months, as the Islamist Palestinian group sought to show military strength despite Israel's Gaza offensive.

The Israeli military said eight projectiles were identified crossing from the area of Rafah, the southern tip of the Gaza Strip where Israel kept up operations despite a ruling by the top U.N. court on Friday ordering it to stop attacking the city.

A number of the projectiles were intercepted, it said. There were no reports of casualties.

In a statement on its Telegram channel, the Hamas al-Qassam Brigades said the rockets were launched in response to "Zionist massacres against civilians."

Rafah is located about 100 km (60 miles) south of Tel Aviv.

Israel says it wants to root out Hamas fighters holed up in Rafah and rescue hostages it says are being held in the area, but its assault has worsened the plight of civilians and caused an international outcry.

On Sunday, Israeli strikes killed at least five Palestinians in Rafah, according to local medical services. The Gaza health ministry identified the dead as civilians.

Israeli tanks have probed around the edges of Rafah, near the crossing point from Gaza into Egypt, and have entered some of its eastern districts, residents say, but have not yet entered the city in force since the start of operations in the city earlier this month.

Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz said the rockets fired from Rafah "prove that the (Israel Defense Forces) must operate in every place Hamas still operates from."

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant held an operational assessment in Rafah where he was briefed on "troops’ operations above and below the ground, as well as the deepening of operations in additional areas with the aim of dismantling Hamas battalions," his office said in a statement.

Itamar Ben Gvir, a hardline public security minister who is not part of Israel's war cabinet, urged the army to hit Rafah harder. "Rafah with full force," he posted on X.

Nearly 36,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's offensive, Gaza's health ministry says. Israel launched the operation after Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israeli communities on Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and seizing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.

Fighting also continued in the northern Gaza area of Jabaliya, the scene of intense combat earlier in the war. During one raid, the military said it found a weapons storage site with dozens of rocket parts and weapons at a school.

It denied Hamas statements that Palestinian fighters had abducted an Israeli soldier.

Hamas media said an Israeli airstrike on a house in a neighborhood near Jabaliya killed 10 people and wounded others.

[Cow Poke]

From personal friends of ours in Israel....

Shalom Friends,

I wanted to send you this update to thank you again for your prayers. Yesterday, about 2 hours after the group who prepares and distributes meals for the soldiers had left our congregation in Kiryat Shmona, a missile struck the street just a few feet in front of our building. The explosion blew out all the windows in the front of the building, sending shrapnel straight through the large front door, which is the entrance to the building. Most of the ceilings were also destroyed. The store across the street was completely destroyed by the blast. The missile left a crater three to four feet deep in the pavement. Jessi and our oldest daughter had been there all day. No one was hurt in the attack, praise God!

I have attached some still shots from some videos taken by soldiers who came to pick up the meals. The soldiers rushed over to make sure that [ ] and all the other volunteers were not still there. Again, thank you for praying for us.

One prayer request is for [ ] to be released this week from fighting in Gaza. Sadly, one of his teammates has been injured. We do not know the details, but please keep him in your prayers. When this happens, they often send the whole team out to re-assess whether the team can move forward without the injured person. Often, they do not send the team back in. Please join us in praying for his release.

[seer]

Hamas Armed Wing Says it Launched 'Big Missile' Attack on Tel Aviv

But that's OK, after all they are freedom fighters attacking their oppressors...

[Sparko]

HAMAS directly attacking/bombing/raping Israeli civilians is fine, it's the only way they can resist oppression. The IDF causing collateral civilian deaths when attacking Hamas is "genocide."

[rogue06]

HAMAS directly attacking/bombing/raping Israeli civilians is fine, it's the only way they can resist oppression. The IDF causing collateral civilian deaths when attacking Hamas is "genocide."

It's a mixed up, muddled up, shook up world.

[Mountain Man]

HAMAS directly attacking/bombing/raping Israeli civilians is fine, it's the only way they can resist oppression. The IDF causing collateral civilian deaths when attacking Hamas is "genocide."

Didn't you know? Hamas is allowed to attack Israel as often and as brutally as they want, and Israel is expected to quietly acquiesce. At least that seems to be the world through the eyes of our resident liberals.

[Sparko]

Didn't you know? Hamas is allowed to attack Israel as often and as brutally as they want, and Israel is expected to quietly acquiesce. At least that seems to be the world through the eyes of our resident liberals.

Yuh cuz they are just like the American Indians trying to protect their land!

[Cow Poke]

From personal friends of ours in Israel....

Shalom Friends,

I wanted to send you this update to thank you again for your prayers. Yesterday, about 2 hours after the group who prepares and distributes meals for the soldiers had left our congregation in Kiryat Shmona, a missile struck the street just a few feet in front of our building. The explosion blew out all the windows in the front of the building, sending shrapnel straight through the large front door, which is the entrance to the building. Most of the ceilings were also destroyed. The store across the street was completely destroyed by the blast. The missile left a crater three to four feet deep in the pavement. Jessi and our oldest daughter had been there all day. No one was hurt in the attack, praise God!

I have attached some still shots from some videos taken by soldiers who came to pick up the meals. The soldiers rushed over to make sure that [ ] and all the other volunteers were not still there. Again, thank you for praying for us.

One prayer request is for [ ] to be released this week from fighting in Gaza. Sadly, one of his teammates has been injured. We do not know the details, but please keep him in your prayers. When this happens, they often send the whole team out to re-assess whether the team can move forward without the injured person. Often, they do not send the team back in. Please join us in praying for his release.

In one of those amazing "coincidents", one of our 'missionary families' had to attend a conference in Jerusalem, so nobody was at their home office. It was hit with a missile and totally obliterated.
Again, as far as we know, no Israelis were killed in this latest missile attack from Hamas.

[Starlight]

From personal friends of ours in Israel....

Shalom Friends,

I wanted to send you this update to thank you again for your prayers. Yesterday, about 2 hours after the group who prepares and distributes meals for the soldiers had left our congregation in Kiryat Shmona, a missile struck the street just a few feet in front of our building. The explosion blew out all the windows in the front of the building, sending shrapnel straight through the large front door, which is the entrance to the building. Most of the ceilings were also destroyed. The store across the street was completely destroyed by the blast. The missile left a crater three to four feet deep in the pavement. Jessi and our oldest daughter had been there all day. No one was hurt in the attack, praise God!

I have attached some still shots from some videos taken by soldiers who came to pick up the meals. The soldiers rushed over to make sure that [ ] and all the other volunteers were not still there. Again, thank you for praying for us.

One prayer request is for [ ] to be released this week from fighting in Gaza. Sadly, one of his teammates has been injured. We do not know the details, but please keep him in your prayers. When this happens, they often send the whole team out to re-assess whether the team can move forward without the injured person. Often, they do not send the team back in. Please join us in praying for his release.

Just to note for you, Kiryat Shmona is in northern Israel, a mile or two from the border with Lebanon, and the missile attacks there come from Hezbollah in Lebanon, not Hamas in Gaza. The strike mentioned here by your friends is not directly relevant to the OP post or title.

Hezbollah is a serious military force, with advanced rockets, and militarily speaking poses a pretty serious threat to Israel. Israel's major fight against them in 2006 is sometimes regarded as a loss for Israel.

Hamas' rockets by contrast are fireworks, and don't pose serious military threat. Hamas' weapons technology and military capabilities are not remotely close to Hezbollah and are much closer to cavemen throwing sticks.

The concern from observers since Oct 7th was whether Hezbollah would get seriously involved in the conflict (above tossing the occasional missile Israel's way as it traditionally does). Because militarily speaking, that would have hugely changed the threat Israel was facing, from basically non-existent (Hamas) to really quite serious (Hezbollah). Fortunately, Hezbollah hasn't entered the conflict in a major way, and has stuck to its traditional role of occasionally lobbing a missile but not doing much else.

[Cow Poke]

Just to note for you, Kiryat Shmona is in northern Israel, a mile or two from the border with Lebanon, and the missile attacks there come from Hezbollah in Lebanon, not Hamas in Gaza. The strike mentioned here by your friends is not directly relevant to the OP post or title.

Yes, I'm well aware of the fact that Hamas has their terrorist buddies working with them. I've actually been to Israel, to a Kibbutz where there were still trenches and bomb craters from the Syrians.
When Israel took the Golan Heights at the end of the Six Day war, that kinda resolved that problem.

Hezbollah is a serious military force, with advanced rockets, and militarily speaking poses a pretty serious threat to Israel. Israel's major fight against them in 2006 is sometimes regarded as a loss for Israel.

You DO make me laugh.

Hamas' rockets by contrast are fireworks, and don't pose serious military threat. Hamas' weapons technology and military capabilities are not remotely close to Hezbollah and are much closer to cavemen throwing sticks.

From those Right Wing Radicals at PBS....

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Hamas fired a barrage of rockets from Gaza that set off air raid sirens as far away as Tel Aviv for the first time in months on Sunday in a show of resilience more than seven months into Israel’s massive air, sea and ground offensive.

There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage in what appeared to be the first long-range rocket attack from Gaza since January. Hamas’ military wing claimed the attack. Palestinian militants have sporadically fired rockets and mortar rounds at communities along the Gaza border, and the military arm of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group later Sunday said it fired rockets at nearby communities.

"Fireworks" that set off raid sirens in Tel Aviv - MAN, I gotta get me some of them for Independence Day!!!

[Starlight]

Yes, I'm well aware of the fact that Hamas has their terrorist buddies working with them. I've actually been to Israel, to a Kibbutz where there were still trenches and bomb craters from the Syrians.

Okay, but you didn't seem aware your second post in this thread wasn't related to your first post about Hamas rockets and Tel Aviv.

Hamas' rockets by contrast are fireworks, and don't pose serious military threat.

From those Right Wing Radicals at PBS....

...There were no immediate reports of casualties or damage...

Precisely.

"Fireworks" that set off raid sirens in Tel Aviv - MAN, I gotta get me some of them for Independence Day!!!

Generally speaking, I would say setting off air raid sirens and taking cover in response to Hamas rockets probably isn't worthwhile. The rockets aren't powerful enough and don't do enough damage to make the time/energy/anxiety that the populace spends hiding from them in bomb shelters a worthwhile trade-off. On a day like Oct 7th where Hamas fired thousands of them, taking cover would have been worthwhile, but not for a small attack like this one, with rockets as ineffective as what Hamas has.

[Cow Poke]

Okay, but you didn't seem aware your second post in this thread wasn't related to your first post about Hamas rockets and Tel Aviv.

My apologies - I should have known you had trouble processing two thoughts at once.

Generally speaking, I would say setting off air raid sirens and taking cover in response to Hamas rockets probably isn't worthwhile.

"Pay no attention to the incoming rockets, my fellow Jews - it's just those durn Hamas kids shooting off fireworks again!

The rockets aren't powerful enough and don't do enough damage to make the time/energy/anxiety that the populace spends hiding from them in bomb shelters a worthwhile trade-off. On a day like Oct 7th where Hamas fired thousands of them, taking cover would have been worthwhile, but not for a small attack like this one, with rockets as ineffective as what Hamas has.

I gotta hand it to ya, Star -- you DO provide a certain element of entertainment.

[Cow Poke]

...The rockets aren't powerful enough and don't do enough damage to make the time/energy/anxiety that the populace spends hiding from them in bomb shelters a worthwhile trade-off.....

Hmmmmmm.... who do I trust ... Newsweek's award winning Senior Writer of Foreign Policy - or an internetzweb Hamas Apologist?

The A-120 bears a resemblance to the even further-range R-160, which debuted during the 2014 war and takes its name from Hamas official Abdel-Aziz Rantissi, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike a decade earlier. The Al-Qassam Brigades has more recently used the R-160 to strike Israel's northern city of Haifa during the current conflict.

The longest-range weapon known to exist in Hamas' stockpile, however, is the Ayyash-250, named after Yahya Ayyash, also known as "the Engineer," who pioneered the Al-Qassam Brigades' bombmaking efforts until his assassination by Israeli Shin Bet agents using an exploding cell phone in 1996. The Al-Qassam Brigades has shown footage of the Ayyash-250 conducting long-range strikes amid the ongoing war.

In addition to these weapons, Hamas is also believed to possess a number of rockets acquired from abroad. These include 107mm rockets acquired with an 8-kilometer range acquired from Iran, 122mm rockets with 12-40-kilometer ranges acquired from various countries, the Fajr-5 rocket with a 75-kilometer range acquired from Iran and the M302 rocket acquired with a 180-kilometer range acquired from Syria.

[Starlight]

Hmmmmmm.... who do I trust ... Newsweek's award winning Senior Writer of Foreign Policy - or an internetzweb Hamas Apologist?

Hamas doubtless has small numbers of other kinds of rocket in its supply pile, as the piece you post speculates about. But in practice, the type of missile that Hamas uses in abundance are Qassam rockets:

The Qassam rocket is the best-known type of rocket deployed by Palestinian militants...

[they are] inaccurate and prone to malfunction...

The utility of the Qassam rocket design is assumed to be ease and speed of manufacture, using common tools and components....

In 2006, the Israeli Ministry of Defense viewed the Qassams as "more a psychological than physical threat."

They are glorified firecrackers that Hamas cobbles together out of a pipe, sugar, and fertilizer.

[Cow Poke]

Hamas doubtless has small numbers of other kinds of rocket in its supply pile....

Still laughing.

You borrowed Sam's rake, didn't you?

rake smack.gif