Thursday, April 01, 2010

Wide Angle View

A Qassam rocket fired by Palestinian militants on Thursday hit an open area along the coast of Ashkelon. No injuries or damage were reported.
The rocket struck Israel just hours after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged Hamas political chief Khaled Meshaal this week to stop militants in the Gaza Strip from firing rockets against Israel.
The foreign minister made his request on Wednesday in a telephone meeting, which according to Russian news agencies covered a variety of issues regarding the Middle East.
Lavrov told Meshaal that the recent increase in rocket fire was unacceptable. Meshaal responded to the call by reiterating Hamas' declared stance that it was not interested in an escalation of tensions with Israel and would continue to try to maintain calm in the area.
The number of terror-related attacks in Israel doubled last month, rising from 53 in February to 125 in March, a Shin Bet report published on Thursday said.
The most dramatic rise in attacks occurred in Jerusalem, while attacks from Gaza were the most prevalent.
The report said that the rise in terror attacks - which include Molotov cocktails hurled, Qassam rockets fired from Gaza and shooting-related incidents - was documented across Israel.


The number of attacks from the Gaza Strip rose from 13 in February to 36 in March; in Jerusalem, the number of attacks rose from 3 in February to 27 in March.
During the month of March, there were 89 Molotov cocktails hurled at Israel Defense Forces soldiers and police, while 35 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israeli territory and five explosive devices planted, the report said.

Egyptian security forces uncovered a massive arms cache in the central Sinai Peninsula before dawn on Thursday allegedly intended for smuggling into the Gaza Strip, according to the Egyptian daily Al-Yum a-Saba.
The cache included 100 anti-aircraft missiles, 40 RPG missiles and 40 other explosive devices.
The commander of Egypt's security forces in Sinai, General Mohammed Najib, was tipped off to the cache after he was notified that suspected arms smugglers had succeeded in stashing their weapons in the area.
The military wing of Hamas released a video Wednesday showing part of last week's Gaza border skirmish between the IDF and Palestinian militants, in which a Golani Brigade officer and soldier were killed.
The Hamas footage does not clearly show the moment in which a grenade carried by Maj. Eliraz Peretz was detonated by Palestinian fire. The footage does show paramedics tending to the wounded, but the tape was shot from a distance and does not give a detailed view of the incident.
Hamas used the footage to once again claim credit for the clash. Other groups have also claimed responsibility, and the Israel Defense Forces believes the militants were member of the Islamic Jihad, while Hamas was only involved in firing mortar shells after the exchange began.
However, the fact the Hamas appears to have had a cameraman stationed in the area ahead of the incident might indicate it had a bigger part in its planning than originally thought.
The footage released Wednesday underscores Hamas' strong desire to present some achievements for the Gazan public, as it struggles to preserve internal order and security in the Strip.
Hamas is also trying to reclaim its role in the armed fight against Israel, although since the conclusion of Cast Lead in January 2009, the organization has mostly steered clear of the IDF.
Legendary dancer and choreographer Mikhail Baryshnikov will perform in Israel in late June, in a joint performance with Ana Laguna. The performance, titled "Three solos and a duet," will include choreography by Mats Ek (Laguna's husband), Benjamin Millepied and Alexei Ratmansky. Baryshnikov, 62, will dance throughout.
The dancer instructed promoters to give away 50 free tickets to each of his three shows to ballet students, according to their teacher's recommendations. All other tickets are expected to be priced at NIS 280 to NIS 375.
All the above taken from the April 1, 2010 edition of the Israeli on-line news source, Haaretz.com

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