Post by Paddy by Grace on Jan 1, 2009 22:04:58 GMT -7
news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090101/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_gaza_mosques;_ylt=AktikwbgX_d0tu4MShtTYDcLewgF
JERUSALEM – Mosques and Muslim prayer halls have not escaped the relentless bombardment of Hamas targets in Gaza by Israel, which claims the Islamic militants misuse some of the holy sites as weapons depots and command centers.
Yuval Diskin, the head of the Shin Bet security service, told the Israeli Cabinet Wednesday that Hamas leaders were taking shelter in the mosques "on the assumption that Israel will not attack."
Israeli bombs have damaged at least five mosques and two prayer halls during the five-day air campaign against Hamas facilities, according to a count by The Associated Press in Gaza.
Israel historically has struck mosques when it deems them legitimate targets, although it is wary of the potential outrage from the Muslim world and sensitive to its own painful history of the desecration of synagogues.
But Wednesday's air strike that left Gaza City's Tel Al-Hawa mosque in ruins, with only its minaret remaining upright, was deliberate.
A security official said Israeli intelligence — probably surveillance aircraft — saw missiles being fired outside the mosque and the men who launched them running inside the building. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss intelligence operations.
Worshippers denied the mosque was a military outpost.
"This is a slap on the face of all Muslims," said area resident Iyad Akram, who prayed there just hours before it was leveled. "This is a mosque, a holy site, and not the first one in this ugly war to be targeted by the Jews."
The Israeli army spokesman's office said the mosque was hit because "terrorists were hoarding weapons" inside and using the compound to launch missiles.
"The strike set off numerous secondary explosions, caused by the munitions stockpiled in the mosque," the spokesman said. Israel would continue to attack militant targets, "even if they (Hamas) cynically choose to operate from locations of religious or cultural significance."
The small neighborhood mosque was built six years ago near the site of a Jewish settlement that was abandoned when Israel evacuated its civilians from Gaza in 2005.
"It's a mosque. You can't hide a tank. You can't hide anything inside," said Akram, a 38-year-old technician.
Hamas' bitter Palestinian foe, the Fatah movement, also has accused the Islamists of storing weapons in the basements of mosques. Mosques also are commonly used as community centers and meeting halls, and a convenient place for Hamas leaders to gather.
Hamas has controlled all the mosques in Gaza since it expelled Fatah in a fratricidal war in 2007.
Even when not targets themselves, mosques have suffered collateral damage during Israeli air strikes. On Wednesday, windows were shattered at the Al Nasr mosque northwest of Gaza when an Israeli warplane bombed a money exchange office. Israel accused the money changers of laundering illicit funds.
JERUSALEM – Mosques and Muslim prayer halls have not escaped the relentless bombardment of Hamas targets in Gaza by Israel, which claims the Islamic militants misuse some of the holy sites as weapons depots and command centers.
Yuval Diskin, the head of the Shin Bet security service, told the Israeli Cabinet Wednesday that Hamas leaders were taking shelter in the mosques "on the assumption that Israel will not attack."
Israeli bombs have damaged at least five mosques and two prayer halls during the five-day air campaign against Hamas facilities, according to a count by The Associated Press in Gaza.
Israel historically has struck mosques when it deems them legitimate targets, although it is wary of the potential outrage from the Muslim world and sensitive to its own painful history of the desecration of synagogues.
But Wednesday's air strike that left Gaza City's Tel Al-Hawa mosque in ruins, with only its minaret remaining upright, was deliberate.
A security official said Israeli intelligence — probably surveillance aircraft — saw missiles being fired outside the mosque and the men who launched them running inside the building. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss intelligence operations.
Worshippers denied the mosque was a military outpost.
"This is a slap on the face of all Muslims," said area resident Iyad Akram, who prayed there just hours before it was leveled. "This is a mosque, a holy site, and not the first one in this ugly war to be targeted by the Jews."
The Israeli army spokesman's office said the mosque was hit because "terrorists were hoarding weapons" inside and using the compound to launch missiles.
"The strike set off numerous secondary explosions, caused by the munitions stockpiled in the mosque," the spokesman said. Israel would continue to attack militant targets, "even if they (Hamas) cynically choose to operate from locations of religious or cultural significance."
The small neighborhood mosque was built six years ago near the site of a Jewish settlement that was abandoned when Israel evacuated its civilians from Gaza in 2005.
"It's a mosque. You can't hide a tank. You can't hide anything inside," said Akram, a 38-year-old technician.
Hamas' bitter Palestinian foe, the Fatah movement, also has accused the Islamists of storing weapons in the basements of mosques. Mosques also are commonly used as community centers and meeting halls, and a convenient place for Hamas leaders to gather.
Hamas has controlled all the mosques in Gaza since it expelled Fatah in a fratricidal war in 2007.
Even when not targets themselves, mosques have suffered collateral damage during Israeli air strikes. On Wednesday, windows were shattered at the Al Nasr mosque northwest of Gaza when an Israeli warplane bombed a money exchange office. Israel accused the money changers of laundering illicit funds.