The "Qassam War" in Gaza

Two points if you can say what object ties the following together: Israeli accusations against the UN, the deaths of two children, new fighting in Gaza, and the possible unravelling of Ariel Sharron's unilateral withdrawal plans. Yup, its bigger than a breadbox. Nope, its not a vegetable. Give up? Its the "Qassam" rocket, used by Palestinian terrorists against Israel.

Each rocket is 5 or 6 feet long, weighing around 50 or 60 pounds. They can easily be carried in the trunk of a vehicle, and can be set up quickly on simple tripod-type launchers. Typically Qassams are fired from a grove of trees, an alleyway or other cover, where they are difficult to detect and from where the crew can quickly escape.

These small, short-range rockets are used mostly by the Islamists of Hamas, but also other groups, as a crude standoff weapon to reach Israeli territory. There are several versions, sporting names such as al-Aqsa and Nasser 3, but they're known generically as Qassam rockets. Israeli officials say they're manufactured in over 100 workshops hidden throughout Gaza, some more sophisticated than others.

With a range of only around 5 miles, and a warhead of just 5 pounds, the Qassams were mostly seen as a nuisance. They are notoriously inaccurate (just being fired in the general direction of a target) and until this summer did little damage to the few Israeli towns within range--and they hadn't killed anyone. That all changed in June when a small boy and his grandfather were killed. Then in late September, a Qassam hit two schoolboys in the town of Sderot. These deaths have provoked an onslaught of Israeli military action in northern Gaza, with some 2,000 IDF troops trying to establish a sanitary buffer-zone to deny the launch areas.

Israel has also made angry allegations against the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA). Israel claims that recent aerial reconaissance video over Gaza shows a Qassam rocket being loaded onto a UN ambulance, citing this as proof that UNRWA workers are at least allowing their vehicles to be used to support terrorism. For its part, the UN adamantly claims the object was a stretcher, not a rocket--which may well be the case. And still the Qassams fly. On Monday, at least two more were launched, wounding another Israeli.

This "Qassam War" is wreaking havoc with Israeli Prime Minister Sharon's plans for unilateral withdrawal from Gaza. Although in any objective sense the rocket attacks are mere pinpricks and a negligible physical threat, their psychological effect is substantial. As with suicide bombings, random civilian casualties--especially when children are killed--makes it an emotional issue.

Additionally, the anxiety over more effective rocket strikes in the future heightens the Israelis' sensitivity to each rocket fired now. With Hamas announcing they are working on better Qassam versions with longer ranges, the specter looms of a day when major Israeli metropolitan areas come within rocket range, or when Qassams start carrying chemical or radiological warheads.

There are possible technological solutions. Israeli defense firms have developed radars and other sensors that can pinpoint rocket launches almost instantly, and some such equipment has been fielded. More promising still is a laser device, still being refined, that can zap rockets while they're in flight. The IDF already relies heavily on helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to monitor likely launch areas and to try to take out the terrorists before they fire. But it is impossible to maintain total coverage. In practical terms--today--the only way the IDF can prevent a daily barrage is to physically occupy and aggressively patrol a cordon sanitaire in Gaza.

One little problem. The hoped-for Israeli "withdrawal" from Gaza starts looking like an expanded occupied area, a-la the security zone in southern Lebanon--especially if the terrorists come up with longer-range rockets.

T.T.

©2004, WestRim Digital Arts