Rocket and mortar attacks on southern Israel

Since 2001, Palestinian militants have launched thousands of rocket and mortar attacks on Israel from the Gaza Strip as part of the continuing Arab–Israeli conflict. The attacks, widely condemned for targeting civilians, have been described as terrorism by the United Nations, the European Union, and Israeli officials, and are defined as war crimes by human rights groups Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The international community considers indiscriminate attacks on civilian targets to be illegal under international law.

From 2004 to 2014, these attacks have killed 27 Israeli civilians, 5 foreign nationals, 5 IDF soldiers, and at least 11 Palestinians and injured more than 1900 people. Their main effect is their creation of widespread psychological trauma and disruption of daily life among the Israeli populace. Medical studies in Sderot, the Israeli city closest to the Gaza Strip, have documented a post-traumatic stress disorder incidence among young children of almost 50%, as well as high rates of depression and miscarriage. A public opinion poll conducted in March 2013 found that a majority of Palestinians do not support firing rockets at Israel from the Gaza Strip, with only 38% favoring their use. Another poll conducted in September 2014 found that 80% of Palestinians support firing rockets against Israel, if it does not allow unfettered access to Gaza. These rocket attacks have caused flight cancellations at Ben Gurion airport.

The weapons, often generically referred to as Qassams, were initially crude and short-range, mainly affecting Sderot and other communities bordering the Gaza Strip. In 2006, more sophisticated rockets began to be deployed, reaching the larger coastal city of Ashkelon, and by early 2009 major cities Ashdod and Beersheba had been hit by Katyusha, WS-1B and Grad rockets. In 2012, Jerusalem and Israel's commercial center Tel Aviv were targeted with locally made "M-75" and Iranian Fajr-5 rockets, respectively, and in July 2014, the northern city of Haifa was targeted for the first time. A few projectiles have contained white phosphorus said to be recycled from unexploded munitions used by Israel in bombing Gaza.Ilana Curie
Phosphorus mortar shell detected in Negev
Ynet 14 January 2009Yanir Yagna, Eli Ashkenazi, Anshel Pfeffe
Hamas Launches First Phosphorus Rocket at Negev; No Injuries Reported
Haaretz 15 January 2009:’Palestinian militants fired a phosphorus rocket at Israel for the first time yesterday, one of 17 fired into Israel as fighting entered its 19th day. The phosphorus rocket exploded in an open field in the western Negev. No injuries or damage were reported.White phosphorus found in mortar shells fired from Gaza".
Ynet 1 January 2012.

Attacks have been carried out by all Palestinian armed groups, and, prior to the 2008–2009 Gaza War, were consistently supported by most Palestinians,Palestinian – Israeli Joint Press Release
, PSR – Survey Research Unit 24 March 2008 although the stated goals have been mixed.

Israeli defenses constructed specifically to deal with the weapons include fortifications for schools and bus stops as well as an alarm system named Red Color. Iron Dome, a system to intercept short-range rockets, was developed by Israel and first deployed in the spring of 2011 to protect Beersheba and Ashkelon, but officials and experts warned that it would not be completely effective. Shortly thereafter, it intercepted a Palestinian Grad rocket for the first time.Iron Dome successfully intercepts Gaza rocket for first time
, Haaretz 7 April 2011

In the cycle of violence, rocket attacks alternate with Israeli military actions. From the outbreak of the Al Aqsa Intifada (30 September 2000) through March 2013, 8,749 rockets and 5,047 mortar shells were fired on Israel, while Israel has conducted several military operations in the Gaza Strip, among them Operation Rainbow (2004), Operation Days of Penitence (2004), Operation Summer Rains (2006), Operation Autumn Clouds (2006), Operation Hot Winter (2008), Operation Cast Lead (2009), Operation Pillar of Defense (2012), Operation Protective Edge (2014), and Operation Guardian of the Walls (2021).

Overview

Attacks began in 2001. Since then (August 2014 data), almost 20,000 rockets have hit southern Israel, all but a few thousand of them since Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip in August 2005. Hamas justified these as counter-attacks to the Israeli blockade of Gaza. The rockets have killed 28 people and injured hundreds more. The range of the rockets has increased over time. The original Qassam rocket has a range of about but more advanced rockets, including versions of the old Soviet Grad or Katyusha have hit Israeli targets from Gaza.Q&A: Gaza conflict
, BBC News 18 January 2009

Some analysts see the attacks as a shift away from reliance on suicide bombing, which was previously Hamas's main method of attacking Israel, as an adoption of the rocket tactics used by Lebanese group Hezbollah.

Participating groups

All the Palestinian armed groups carry out rocket and mortar attacks, with varying frequency. The main groups are Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the Popular Resistance Committees, Fatah, and the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine. In June 2007 Hamas took over from Fatah as the de facto governing authority in the Gaza Strip, while Fatah holds the presidency of the Palestinian National Authority.

Islamic Jihad has involved other Palestinians in the activities, running summer camps where children were taught how to hold a Qassam rocket launcher. One Islamic Jihad rocket maker, Awad al-Qiq, was a science teacher and headmaster at a United Nations school. Christopher Gunness, a UNRWA spokesman, said the UN had "zero-tolerance policy towards politics and militant activities in our schools", but that they "cannot police people's minds."

A 2007 report by Human Rights Watch found "little evidence that Palestinian security forces were making efforts to prevent rocket attacks or to hold responsible the militants who launch them." In some cases, "Palestinian security officials themselves acknowledged they were not acting to stop the attacks."

The Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center estimated that in 2007 the proportions of rockets fired from the Gaza Strip were:
: 34% – Palestinian Islamic Jihad ( Al Quds)
: 22% – Hamas ( Qassam)
:  8% – Fatah ( Kafah)
:  6% – Popular Resistance Committees ( al Nasser)
: 30% – unknown

History

1975

On 3 May 1975 at 4:15 am, two 107mm rockets struck Jerusalem's central area, not far from the Jerusalem Botanical Gardens.

2001–06

Rockets were originally fired mainly on Sderot, an Israeli city on the border of the Gaza Strip. Sderot's population density is slightly greater than that of the Gaza Strip. Due to this, and despite the imperfect aim of these homemade projectiles, they have caused deaths and injuries, as well as significant damage to homes and property, psychological distress and emigration from the city. Ninety percent of the city's residents have had a rocket exploding in their street or an adjacent one.

On 28 March 2006, while Israelis went to general elections, the first Katyusha rocket from Gaza was fired at Israel. The rocket fell near the Itfah kibbutz on the outskirts of Ashkelon and caused no damage or casualties. Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility. Several months later, On 5 July 2006, a rocket hit the center of Ashkelon for the first time, striking an empty high school. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called the attack, which was claimed by Hamas, an "escalation of unprecedented gravity", but the event was quickly overshadowed by the 2006 Lebanon War.

On 25 May 2006 the al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades group that published in April 2006 that they had been launching long range missile on Israeli cities, sent a letter to Ramattan that they had developed chemical and biological weapons and threaten with chemical warfare. later that month report of use of chemical weapons by that group had been published in the media.

On 8 June, an event occurred that formed part of a 'chronology of crisis' leading to the most intense barrage of rocket attacks during 2006. Although Israel acknowledged that Hamas was largely sticking to the February 2005 cease-fire (in Fatah-controlled Gaza), it recommenced assassinations of Hamas leaders with the killing of Jamal Abu Samhadana. The Israeli military said Samhadana and the other targeted militants were planning an attack on Israel. The next day, in response to the assassination and calls for revenge, Islamic Jihad fired rockets at Israel, and a few hours later the IDF retaliated in turn with a bombardment of launch sites on a Gaza beach near Beit Lahia. During the time span of the IDF bombardment, a civilian Gaza family, the Ghalias, was all but wiped out in an explosion. In response to the assassination of its Ministry official and the civilian 'beach' deaths, Hamas announced that it was going to recommence rocket attacks. This was followed by a series of mutual attacks and reprisals between the IDF and Gaza factions, culminating in the abduction of two suspected Hamas members, and, on the following day, of IDF Corporal Gilad Shalit. The latter event gave rise to Operation Summer Rains, as a result of which Gaza's electricity network was damaged, and 402 Palestinians and 7 Israelis were killed.

2007

On 5 January 2007 Palestinian militants fired a Katyusha rocket at Ashkelon. The Katyusha has a range of 18–20 kilometers, and the rocket was fired from the Al-Atatra region in the northern Gaza Strip, traveling about 17 kilometers before reaching its target. No one was hurt in the Katyusha attack. On 7 October 2007 the Popular Resistance Committees claimed responsibility for a Grad-type Katyusha that hit Netivot. During this period, Katyusha attacks from Gaza were rare.

2008–09

In January 2008 the border between Gaza and Egypt was breached by Hamas. It allowed them to bring in Russian and Iranian made rockets with a larger range.

In the first half of 2008, the number of attacks rose sharply, consistently totaling several hundred per month. In addition, Ashkelon was hit many times during this period by Grad rockets.

On 26 February 2008 a Grad rocket hit the hospital grounds of the Barzilai Medical Center, approximately 200 meters away from the neonatal intensive-care unit. As it is only 6 miles away from the Gaza border, it is the frequently the target of rocket attacks, with 140 rockets fired at it over the course of one weekend.

After reports of shells with white phosphorus launched against southern parts of Israel on 14 January 2009, Israeli medical emergency forces are now taught how to treat white phosphorus victims and are ordered to have equipment to handle white phosphorus.

From 19 June to 19 December 2008, an Egyptian-mediated ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was in effect. During this time, only several dozen rockets were fired at Israel, a marked decrease from the pre-ceasefire period. Hamas imprisoned some of those firing rockets.

During the Gaza War, Palestinian militants began to deploy improved Qassam and factory-made rockets with a range of 40 kilometers. Rockets reached major Israeli cities Ashdod, Beersheba and Gedera for the first time, putting one-eighth of Israel's population in rocket range and raising concerns about the safety of the Tel Aviv metropolitan area, Israel's largest population center, as well as the Negev Nuclear Research Center. According to Israeli authorities, 571 rockets and 205 mortar shells landed in Israel during the 22 days of the conflict.

On 18 January 2009, following a unilateral ceasefire declaration by Israel, Hamas and Islamic Jihad announced that they would cease rocket attacks for one week. After that, rockets and mortar attacks continued almost daily through February.

2010

According to the Israel Security Agency's annual report, Palestinians carried out 150 rocket launches and 215 mortar launches at Israel during the year. This represented a decrease in both types of attacks compared to 2009, in which there were 569 rocket launches and 289 mortar launches.

The report said Iran succeeded in smuggling 1,000 mortar shells and hundreds of short-range rockets into the Gaza Strip over the course of the year.Iran smuggled hundreds of rockets to Gaza in 2010
, Jerusalem Post 30 December 2010 The security agency also warned that the Sinai Desert was turning into Hamas's "backyard" for operations and storage of arms. 2010 saw two unique instances of Hamas firing rockets from the Sinai at the southern Israeli port city of Eilat.

On 18 March, Thai national Manee Singmueangphon was killed by a Palestinian Qassam rocket launched at a greenhouse in Netiv Haasara. Both Ansar al Sunna, an Islamist group thought to have links with al-Qaeda in Iraq, and al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, the military wing of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas's Fatah party, claimed responsibility for the attack.

On 30 July, a Hamas Grad missile hit a residential neighborhood in the heart of the Israeli coastal city of Ashkelon. No one was physically injured, but eight people suffered from shock and surrounding apartment buildings sustained damage.

On 2 August, Hamas militants in Egypt fired seven Iranian-made Grad missiles at the resort city of Eilat in the extreme south of Israel. Overshot missiles hit the Jordanian city of Aqaba, killing one person and wounding several.

On 20 October, an accidental explosion occurred at a Hamas Qassam rocket training site in the densely crowded Tel As-Sultan neighborhood of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Thirteen people were injured by flying shrapnel, including five children and three women.

2011

Over the course of 2011, 680 rockets, mortars and Grad missiles were fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel.
At the end of 2010, Palestinian Islamic Jihad said it and other Palestinians militant groups in the Gaza Strip would temporarily halt rocket attacks against Israel. On 7 January, it claimed responsibility for a mortar attack that injured three agricultural workers,Gaza mortar shell wounds two men at Israeli farm
, Reuters 8 January 2011 and the group was responsible for most of the attacks on Israel in the first two weeks of the year. On 12 January, the group declared again that it would cease firing rockets. Multiple, unclaimed rocket and mortar attacks occurred on 16, 17 and 18 January.

On 2 January, it was revealed that two East Jerusalem Arabs, employees of the British Consulate General in Jerusalem, were arrested for suspected involvement in an aborted Hamas plot to fire a missile at Teddy Stadium during a soccer match. The two were charged the following day with weapons trafficking.

On 15 March, Israel seized the ''Victoria'', a ship containing concealed Iranian missiles destined for the Gaza Strip.

On 27 March, Israel first deployed the new Iron Dome missile defense system to protect Beersheba. The city, one of Israel's largest, had recently been targeted again by Palestinian missiles after being safe since the 2008-2009 Gaza War. A week later, a second battery was deployed to protect Ashkelon. On 7 April, the Ashkelon battery successfully intercepted a Palestinian Grad missile fired at the city, marking the first successful interception of a short range rocket in history. On 31 August, Israel deployed a third battery outside Ashdod before the new school year. As of that date, Iron Dome had intercepted several dozen Gazan rockets at an estimated cost of $100,000 per interception, not including the price of the system itself.

On 4 April, Israel indicted alleged Hamas "rocket godfather" Dirar Abu Sisi in the Beersheba District Court. Abu Sisi had reportedly been captured by Israel in the Ukraine a month prior. He denied any wrongdoing.

On 7 April, Hamas militants fired a Kornet anti-tank missile at an Israel school bus. The sole passenger on board, 16-year-old boy Daniel Viflic, was killed.

On 18 August, a series of cross-border attacks were carried out in southern Israel near the Egyptian border. The initial attacks sparked several days of clashes between Israel and Palestinian militant groups that resulted in substantial casualties to both sides.

2012

The ''Jerusalem Post'' and ''Ynet news'' reported that in January 2012, two mortars were fired from Gaza into the area governed by the Eshkol Regional Council which were determined by the Israeli military to have contained white phosphorus; the shells were reported to have landed in open fields, causing no injuries or damage. The newspaper said the Eshkol Regional Council filed a formal complaint with the United Nations, noting that the Geneva Conventions prohibit the use of phosphorus against civilians.

Until April 2012 more than 360 rocket and mortar attacks had been launched (~300 during the March 2012 Gaza–Israel clashes).

The ''Ynet news''reported that In May 2012 the Islamic Jihad published video footage of a multi-barrel rocket launcher mounted on vehicle

On 24 October 2012, " re than 65 rockets were fired into southern Israel from the Gaza Strip." A woman in Ashkelon, three foreign workers, and a policeman received injuries. "Several people were treated for shock," according to JNS.org.

2013

On 21 March, during US President Barack Obama's official visit to Israel, Palestinians in Beit Hanoun fired four rockets at the Israeli city of Sderot, triggering alarms in local communities and forcing residents on their way to work or school to run to bomb shelters. One rocket hit the backyard of a home in the city, spraying shrapnel into the walls and shattering windows. A second projectile landed in an open area within the surrounding Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council. The two remaining rockets were believed to have landed within the Gaza Strip. The Mujahedeen Shura Council, a Palestinian Salafi group, claimed responsibility for the attack

On 2 April, Palestinians attempted to fire two mortar shells into Israel; both landed within the Gaza Strip. Later, in the evening, a third projectile was fired into the Eshkol Regional Council. The Mujahedeen Shura Council claimed responsibility for the attacks.Israeli planes strike Gaza for first time since Pillar of Defense
, Times of Israel 2 April 2013 Israel responded to the attacks with air strikes on two targets in the Gaza Strip that night, causing no injuries. This was the first such strike since Operation Pillar of Defense. Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon said: " see Hamas as being responsible for everything that is fired from the Strip at Israel. We won't allow any routine involving a drizzle of rockets at our civilians and forces."

On 3 April, Palestinians from Gaza fired two rockets at the Israeli city of Sderot. The rockets struck during the morning as children were arriving to school, triggering the alert siren and sending families into bomb shelters for cover.2 rockets pound Sderot area as tensions rise on Gaza front
, Jerusalem Post 3 April 2013 The United Nations special envoy to the Middle East Robert Serry condemned the "indiscriminate firing of rockets into civilian areas" and also called on Israel to exercise restraint. France said it "harshly condemns" the rocket fire on the "civilian population in south Israel". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: "If the quiet is violated, we will respond strongly".

On 4 April, Palestinians again fired a rocket and three mortar shells at Israel. A rocket landed in an open area in the Eshkol Regional Council at around 2 am, triggering alarms in nearby communities, while two of the mortars fell within the Gaza Strip.

On 29 April, a rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip which impacted southern Israel, causing no casualties or damage."Gaza rocket strikes Israel, causes no injuries: military"
, Yahoo! News (29 April 2012)

On 19 June, three Grad rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip, hitting the Israeli town of Ashkelon. The attacks caused no injuries, marking the first time that rockets had been fired from Gaza since 29 April."Rockets fired from Gaza hit Israeli coast "
, The Independent (19 June 2012)

2014

On 5 March, the Israeli Navy intercepted a ship containing dozens of long-range rockets being smuggled from Iran to the Gaza Strip.

On 10 March, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamist group that controls the Gaza Strip, unveiled a monument to its rocket attacks on Israeli cities and towns, a life-sized model of an M-75 rocket in Gaza City. The group declared that the attacks "managed to take the battle to the heart of the Zionist entity (Israel)".

On 8 July, Operation Protective Edge commenced in response to rocket fire from the Gaza Strip, ending on 26 August. In this time period, between 2500 and 3000 rockets were launched.

2015

In 2015, there were 23 Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, according to the IDF.

On 23 April, Israel's 67th independence day, a rocket was fired from the Gaza Strip at Israel. The rocket hit an open field in the Sha'ar HaNegev region near Sderot, causing no injuries or damage.

On 27 May, an M-75 or Grad missile impacted in Gan Yavne, a city east of Ashdod. No reports of injuries or damage were noted initially.

2016

In 2016, there were 15 Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel.

2017

The Israeli military reported that 35 rockets and mortars were launched from the Gaza Strip in 2017, the vast majority of them in December. This wave of rocket attacks came amid Palestinian outrage over the United States government decision to move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem. The rockets did not cause any fatalities or serious injuries. The Israeli military attributed the attacks to Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other Salafi groups. Israel retaliated to the attacks by striking Hamas positions, causing two deaths. Hamas conducted a series of arrests of Salafi militants it said were responsible for rocket attacks.

2018

Hundreds of rockets were fired at Israel during the Gaza-Israel clashes of November 2018. at least one civilian fatality has been reported in Ashkelon, with 70 reported as wounded. The man who was killed was a Palestinian who had moved to Israel from occupied Hebron.

The Iron dome has successfully intercepted around 100 of the 370 rockets that have been fired. After the attacks, the IDF announced that it had struck over 100 targets in the Gaza Strip including a weapons factory, munitions warehouse and Hamas' Public Security offices. Hamas responded to the air strikes by making additional threats against Be'er Sheva and Ashdod. The attacks had a significant effect on businesses in southern Israel as restaurant patrons cancelled their reservations. The finance minister announced that Israeli businesses in certain regions would be compensated for losses. All schools within 40 km of Gaza were closed; the Israel Tax Authority has promised compensation to parents who were unable to go to work because they had to stay home with their children.

2019

2020

2021

On the evening between 23 and 24 April 2021 36 rockets were fired towards Israel from Gaza, six of which were intercepted by the Israel Defense Forces' Iron Dome defense system. Although there were no injuries, property was damaged in several communities in Israel. The Israeli military responded with military strikes in Gaza.

On 10 May 2021 Hamas took credit for firing 7 rockets at Jerusalem and Beit Shemesh from Gaza, in what Hamas said was a response to injuries of over 300 Arabs in clashes with Israeli police outside al Aqsa mosque. One of the missiles was intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system, and at least one of the other rockets landed in a village west of Jerusalem. Some homes were damaged, but no casualties were reported. In a separate incident an Israeli driver was wounded when an anti-tank missile fired from Gaza hit the vehicle. Islamic Jihad took credit for that attack.

Tactics

Khaled Jaabari, Gaza commander of the al-Aqsa Martyr's Brigades, said that the group uses Google Earth to determine targets. Rocket fire occasionally occurs in the early morning when children head to school.

A source close to Hamas described the movement's tactic of launching projectiles from between homes during the 2008-2009 Israel-Gaza conflict: "They fired rockets in between the houses and covered the alleys with sheets so they could set the rockets up in five minutes without the planes seeing them. The moment they fired, they escaped, and they are very quick."Ethan Bronner
Parsing Gains of Gaza War
''New York Times'' 18 January 2009 Videos released by Hamas in 2011 show Qassam rockets being fired from residential areas and mosques. According to '' Yedioth Aharonoth'' journalist Elior Levy, "Gaza terror cells choose to fire from urban areas knowing that the Israel Defense Forces refrain from intercepting them for fear of hurting civilians. The killing of civilians in Gaza also serves the terrorists' purposes who claim Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza".

It has been documented, that Arab terrorist groups and Hamas placed weapons and missile launchers in densely populated areas. Human Rights Watch issued a report condemning the firing of Kassam rockets as "war crimes", stating "None of these rockets can be reliably aimed... Such weapons are inherently indiscriminate when directed towards densely populated areas. The absence of Israeli military forces in the areas struck by the rockets, as well as statements from the leaders of Hamas and other armed groups, indicate that many of these attacks are deliberately intended to strike Israeli civilians and civilian structures... Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups have frequently violated the laws of war by firing rockets from within populated areas..." Indiscriminate attacks on civilians and civilian structures that do not discriminate between civilians and military targets are illegal under international law.

Denial of service attacks on emergency services

There have been reports in the Israeli press about denial of service attacks by Palestinians on the Magen David Adom and other emergency call lines after rocket and mortar attacks, that resulted in a development of a filtering system that had been installed in MDA and other emergency call systems.

Israeli defensive measures

Fortifications and bomb shelters

A guidance paper by the Israeli home front command, 21 January 2008
* Tony Karon
The Homemade Rocket That Could Change the Mideast
TIME, 2 November 2002
* Ulrike Putz
A Visit to a Gaza Rocket Factory
Der Spiegel, 29 January 2008

;Science and security

Rocket Threat from the Gaza Strip, 2000—2007
Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, December 2007

HAMAS Rockets
GlobalSecurity.org

Katyusha & Qassam Rockets
aerospaceweb.org
;Humanitarian Aid Organizations

Hope For Sderot

Magen David Adom
MDA

;Human rights groups

Indiscriminate Fire
Human Rights Watch

Qassam rocket fire into Israel
B'Tselem

;Advocacy

Sderot Media Center

Time elapsed since last rocket attack


What are Qassam Rockets?
Jewish Policy Center

{{DEFAULTSORT:Palestinian Rocket Attacks On Israel
2001 establishments in the Palestinian territories
Attacks in Israel
Attacks in the State of Palestine
Israeli–Palestinian conflict
Rocket weapons of Palestine
Terrorist attacks attributed to Palestinian militant groups
Articles containing video clips