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Members of Al Quds Brigades, the terror group that took responsibility for recent Qassam attacks (AP)
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| By Ynetnews November 16, 2006 |
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The Sderot general high school's parent committee announced Thursday morning that the school will be on strike in protest of the firing Qassam rockets at the city.
The parents were protesting the fact that some of the school buildings have still not been fortified and decided to close the school down for fear of a disaster.
A strike was also declared by parents of children studying at the elementary school in the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council.
Shortly after the decision was made to close down the high school, at around 7:30 a.m., Palestinian apparently fired two Qassam rockets at the city, while many children were making their way to school.
The Color Red alert system was activated, and residents reported hearing two loud explosions. Security forces located rocket landings in a chicken coup near the city and in an open area. luckily, there were no reports of injuries or damage.
The strike was initiated by the parents, not by the defense establishment or the Sderot Municipality. The municipality spokesman reported that apart from places in which there is a fortification problem, studies in the city would be held as usual, including in kindergartens. As for daycare centers, the municipality was still waiting for instructions from the Home Front Command.
In the Shaar Hanegev Regional Council, the parent committee declared a strike in the elementary school, but the council announced that school will be held as usual. The conflicting announcements caused confusion among the parents, some of whom arrived at the school to check what was going on.
One of the mothers told Ynet: "There is a lot of confusion here about what is happening. I support the decision to close the school today. Although the houses in the kibbutzim are not fortified, I prefer to have the children next to me these days."
Batia Katar, the head of Sderot's local parent committee told Ynet on Wednesday that she had turned to businessmen Arcadi Gaydamak and Nochi Dunkner to ask them for assistance in plans to take Sderot school children on a holiday outside the city instead of going to unfortified schools.
The issue of unprotected school reached the High Court, where Supreme Court President Justice Dorit Beinish said: "Dozens of kindergartens are unprotected. It is unacceptable that because of Qassams schools are closed. It is a fact that people's lives are in danger."
She ordered the government to explain why schools have not been protected faster.
'Tension affecting children'
The parent committee chairman warned on Wednesday: "We hope that the IDF will enter the Gaza Strip for an offensive tonight, because after a day like this it is really wanted.
"If the IDF starts an operation we will not strike the education system but we will work like we did during Operation Autumn Clouds, when we worked according to IDF orders. If in the morning we realize that there is no operation, we will have no option but to put the education system on strike."
The Israel Defense Forces, on its part, struck several targets in the northern Gaza Strip town of Jabalya on Wednesday night, but did not launch the offensive Katar asked for.
The parents commitee headed by Katar turned to businessmen such as Arcadi Gaydamak to assist in taking the children out of the city: "The security tension is very high and this is affecting the children in the city. Therefore, we asked to take the children out now for a break from studies, for a holiday, and so on and I hope they will take the initiative."
Defense Minister Amir Peretz spoke with Sderot Mayor Eli Moyal.
"We spoke briefly about what happened today and what is happening in the city," Moyal told Ynet. "He told me we have to stop rocket fire and I agree with him."
Moyal was wary not to criticize the IDF and the security establishment after he called for a large-scale operation in the Gaza Strip.
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