'As-the-Grad-Flies' Distances From Gaza to Israeli Cities

Click to embiggen the the map.

(H-T: Jameel at The Muqata)

(Video) BBC Porcine Aviation Moment: Gaza & Sderot

From the Beeb: A celebrated (going by the accent and Belfast reference, Irish) UK soldier takes his own professional "boots-on-the-ground" look at Gaza and Sderot - and comes to (for Bush House, as least) surprising conclusions that refute The Goldstone report about last year's battle, and incidentally, much of the BBC's own programming about the conflict:

A year ago the Israeli army was readying itself to withdraw from the Gaza Strip, after a three-week campaign which led to accusations of war crimes.

The Israelis said they launched their assault because they could no longer tolerate the indiscriminate rocket attacks which were being launched on Israel from inside Gaza.

One year on, celebrated Gulf War veteran Colonel Tim Collins travelled to Gaza for a soldier's view of the conflict.

Broadcast on Tuesday 19 January 2010.

The un-embeddable video is here:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/newsnight/8470100.stm

Anyone with an embed link out there?

(H-T: EoZ)

Gaza: Hamas Turned Aid Meds Into Grenades

From The JPost:

Medicine bottles, transferred to the Gaza Strip as humanitarian aid by Israel, were used by Hamas as grenades against IDF troops during Operation Cast Lead. Pictures of the grenades were obtained exclusively by The Jerusalem Post.

Hamas turned these drug containers into weapons.
Photo: Courtesy

The medicine bottles were manufactured by the Jerusalem Pharmaceutical Company, which is based in el-Bireh, a town adjacent to Ramallah, and the global pharmaceutical company Shire.

The medicine bottles were filled with explosives, holes were drilled in the caps, and fuses were installed. Once Hamas fighters lit the fuses, they had several seconds to throw the grenades at soldiers. The IDF also found small explosive devices that used medical syringes to hold their fuses.

The medical grenades were discovered in northern Gaza by troops during last month's three-week battle against Hamas. The grenades were taken to military explosives experts, and then disassembled and studied.