TEL AVIV Ñ Palestinian insurgents have launched their first attack of the Kassam-2 short-range rocket on Israel.

Three 120 mm Kassam-2 rockets were fired from the northern tip of the Gaza Strip and landed in a field in Israel's Negev desert. Nobody was hurt in the attack and an Israeli patrol later found three Kassam launchers. The rockets were said to have been fired by a timer. Later, Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.

Israeli officials said this was the first time the Kassam-2 struck Israel. The rocket is said to have a range of between five and seven kilometers and a warhead of five kilograms.

The rocket was designed by Hamas but technology was transferred to the ruling Fatah party, the officials said. The Kassam-2, they said, has not undergone serial production.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had threatened to launch a massive retaliation should his country be struck by the Kassam-2. But government sources said Sharon was warned against such a move during his meetings with President George Bush and Vice President Richard Cheney in Washington last week.

On Monday, Israeli AH-64A helicopters fired five anti-tank missiles toward Palestinian Authority security facilities in northern Gaza. Earlier, Apache helicopters and F-16 fighters attacked Palestinian facilities in Gaza City. Several dozen people, including two United Nations staffers, were reported to have been lightly injured in the raids.

Israeli troops also raided the West Bank city of Nablus in search of Kassam-2 missiles. Military sources said the operation on early Monday did not yield any such weapons.

Hamas is also said to be working on Kassam-3, with a range of 10 kilometers and the -4 model, with a range of 20 kilometers. Israeli officials described the rockets as inaccurate weapons meant for use against civilian population centers.

The Islamic opposition movement also took credit for an attack on a restaurant outside Israel's military southern command in Beersheba. Two Israelis were killed when three Hamas insurgents opened semi-automatic fire toward the soldiers. One of the Hamas members was wearing an Israeli army uniform.

Print this Article

Email this article

Free Headline Alerts