Palestinian War Against Israel Continues

Hamas continues its war against Israel and Israel is once again playing defense going after the very terrorists responsible for ongoing attacks against Israel.

Israel launched airstrikes against militants firing rockets from the Gaza Strip on Wednesday and vowed to maintain a war "on all fronts" until the territory's Hamas rulers halt attacks.

Vice Premier Haim Ramon said Israel would maintain its blockade of Gaza and reduce supplies of fuel, electricity and some food in an attempt to persuade Hamas to stop the rockets.

Hamas moderately wounded a 14-year-old girl and knocked out power in parts of the rocket-scarred Israeli town of Sderot with a barrage of rockets fired at border communities Tuesday and early Wednesday.

Gaza militants said Israel responded with several airstrikes overnight, but the military confirmed only one, saying aircraft had fired at militants who had just launched rockets. Hamas said four of its men were moderately wounded.

Israel indicated that it would not let up in its attacks on Hamas.

The phrase cycle of violence resurfaces once again, which ignores the fact that if Hamas simply chose to stop firing rockets and attacking Israel, there would be no need for Israel to retaliate against the terrorists. Hamas has no such interest. They are blinded by hatred and religious obligation to destroy Israel and nothing will dissuade them. Sderot is once again the target, but several hit Ashkelon as well.

Let's not forget that the Israeli civilians injured by these attacks have to live with their injuries for the rest of their lives. Some will live with pain, while others will have physical scars. And one has to wonder what they are thinking about when they hear about yet more terrorist attacks injuring and murdering their fellow countrymen. Gila Weiss is a survivor of one of the more horrific terrorist attacks in Israel and reading about her injuries is enough to make you shudder in horror about what the Palestinian suicide bombers put their victims through.

More to the point, it makes you wonder why the media doesn't spend more time detailing the disrupted lives of the victims than trying to make suicide bombers and terrorists seem sympathetic. Yes, Ms. Weiss was profiled in the New York Times in 2002, but that's the exception, not the rule.

It's also quite sad that the Israelis have figured out the best and most efficient way to deal with suicide bombings and terrorist attacks. It comes from the practice of being the targets of such attacks on a regular basis.

Israel will build a security fence along part of the Israel-Egypt border. That's a good start, but unless the Egyptians do their part and secure the border with Gaza, Hamas will continue to infiltrate Egypt and regroup and rearm.

Israel is also reducing the flow of power to Gaza. Expect the usual suspects to claim that Israel is engaging in collective punishment, ignoring the fact that the Palestinian terrorists who dominate Gaza use civilians as human shields, purposefully attack Israeli civilians, and have stated that their sworn religious obligation is the destruction of Israel. Israel has absolutely no obligation to provide power to the very terrorists who seek Israel's destruction.