WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE FROM HERE: Dec. 27, 2008
1:30pm
This morning we woke up late and were lounging around our living room. We suddenly heard a huge boom, the likes of which we had never heard before. It was not a qassam exploding … it was not the sound of faint explosions in the distance. It was really loud and our entire house shook. I ran outside — neighbors were out looking at the sky. It took a few moments before we realized that there was a major air operation launched against Gaza. Its not very far away… only a mile or so. So when they get hit, our house shakes. It literally sounds like a sonic boom.
Now its all over the news. The bombing is not stopping. There have been counter attacks. We are advised to stay inside near bomb shelters. Netivot and Ashkelon have started to get hit- one person has already died in Netivot. We are bracing ourselves for the storm. We are wondering why they aren’t hitting Sderot. Netivot and Ashkelon are being hit by grads, not qassams…. maybe the IDF hit a launching spot intended for Sderot? Who knows.
As usual, I am worried about how this is being covered by the international press. I turned to the CNN web site, and was aghast. It described the situation as “dozens of rockets have been fired into Israel” since the cease-fire broke down. This is preposterous. It has been hundreds. Just this Wednesday there were 70 rockets, yesterday 20… the proportion looks totally different from the outside looking in.
As soon as I felt I had gotten enough footage, my first instinct was to take a shower. Its scary to take a shower when there are a lot of qassams, because you sometimes can’t hear the alert and it takes a while to make it to the shelter. So I wanted to make sure I got my shower in before the onslaught.
2:28pm
There have been Tzeva Adoms in Ashdod, which was hooked up to the Tzeva Adom system earlier this week. And a few minutes ago, Kirat Gat received its first hit. Wow. Last March we were surprised when Ashkelon and Netivot started to be affected. Now the problem covers a large area of the country. Its not just a Sderot problem anymore.
