GAZA CITY — Insurgents are storing missiles in the homes of operatives in the Gaza Strip, according to a Palestinian human rights group.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights said insurgents keep
Kassam-class, short-range missiles in homes in the northern Gaza Strip.
Northern Gaza has been the launching pad for nearly daily missile strikes
against Israel.
The center reported Palestinian casualties from failed launches as well
as missile explosions inside Gaza homes. On Aug. 28, a Palestinian youngster
was killed and his brother was injured when they played with a Kassam
missile near their home in Beit Hanoun.
The Kassam missiles were said to have been stored in a room near a house
that belonged to Khaled Mohammed Al Zaanin. The center said Al Zaanin's
17-year-old son, Mohammed, was killed when he and his brother entered the
room used by insurgents and tampered with the weapons.
Israel's military has targeted suspected Hamas missile arsenals in the
Gaza Strip. Troops were also sent to prevent arms smuggling along the
Egypt-Gaza border.
"PCHR is gravely concerned over the continued number of deaths and
injuries resulting from the misuse of weapons, which has become a prominent
feature of the ongoing security chaos in the region," the center said in a
statement on Aug. 29.