Israel Fires on School

I saw the headline earlier today that Israeli forces had fired on a school and over 30 people were dead. Initially, the reports were that a tank had fired into the school and I thought, "Wait a minute. No tank commander is going to fire into a school building. That doesn't make sense. Sounds like mortars or artillery to me."

For those who might wonder, a mortar is an indirect fire weapon where the gunners generally can't see what they're firing at. Forward observers direct the enemy fire, or radar signatures tell the fire direction center where incoming rounds are originating and target the mortars to fire against the opposing mortars. That's called counter-battery fire and it's taught at every artillery school in the world. We're very good at it. So are the Soviets and the Israelis.

As it turns out, the Jerusalem Post is reporting that Hamas was using mortar's from the school yard and Israeli infantrymen got in a counter-battery argument with the Hamas mortars.

The infantrymen returned mortar shell fire into the school grounds, the army said. Defense officials told The Associated Press that booby-trapped bombs in the school triggered the secondary explosions which killed scores of Palestinians on the site.

That makes more sense. Hamas used the civilians as human shields. Hamas is a terrorist organization and has no moral standing. Hamas is killing civilians for a propaganda coup and of course, the media promptly reported what Hamas told them to report.

Hamas is scum who doesn't deserve to breathe the same air that people breathe. The sooner they're exterminated, the better.

**UPDATE** Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs website entry on this tragedy.