The smuggling operation was highly complex. The Fajr-5 rockets made in Iran, each six meters long, were transported all the way from their country of origin — dismantled and re-assembled along the way, smuggled via the Gaza Strip tunnels and then hoisted out using cranes — until they were positioned at their launching sites in Gaza.

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Summary: The Israel Defense Forces had been tracking the shipment of Fajr-5 missiles from Iran for over a year before the Israeli strike, reports Akhikam Moshe David. Publisher: Maariv (Israel) Original Title: Extensive hunt-down and elimination within a quarter of an hour Author: Akhikam Moshe David Published on: Fri, Nov 16, 2012 Translated on: Fri, Nov 16, 2012 Translated by: Hanni Manor Categories : Israel   Palestinian Authority   Iran   Security

However, the smugglers were unaware that all that time, for over a year, IDF intelligence, headed by Maj. Gen. Aviv Kochavi, was after them, tracking them down  from the moment they left Iran, targeting and destroying the rockets in a matter of minutes.

While Operation Pillar of Defense started with the targeting and killing of Hamas’ military chief in Gaza Ahmed Jabari, the terror organizations in the Gaza Strip were in for an even bigger shock when they realized that virtually the entire lineup of Fajr-5 rockets was eliminated in the space of a few minutes. The Fajr-5 rockets were the most potent weapons in the arsenal of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad. The rockets have a potential range of up to 75 km (47 miles), and they thus may threaten Israel's central Dan district. 

The terror organizations had been stockpiling the Fajr-5 rockets in hidden storage sites over a long period of time, intending to use them on the "day of judgment” as a “tie-breaker” weapon.

The smuggling of rockets into the Gaza Strip was foiled, in part, far away from Gaza. According to reports by foreign sources, it was Israel that bombed the weapon-carrying convoys that left Iran on their way to Gaza.

The long rockets were dismantled into several parts by the smugglers before moving them through the tunnels, while storage sites were prepared for them in Gaza. Israeli intelligence operatives detected excavations in various places across the Gaza Strip, mainly near civilian population centers. These column-like holes were dug out, and the rockets transferred through the tunnels and hoisted out by cranes, which then hid the rockets deep down in the holes, ready for launching in their pre-planned directions. To each launching site, a special operator was assigned so that each knew where “his" rocket, the one he was to fire when the day came, was located.

All through that time, IDF intelligence analyzed the data collected and charted the map of rocket deployment, detailing the exact location of each one, its type, where it was pointed and the nature of its immediate surroundings. Once the intelligence elements identified each rocket and its surrounding area, the information was passed on to the Israel air force.

In this way, an accurate bank of targets was prepared in the course of over a year. The innocent-looking launching sites, covered by soil, were supposed to go into action when the time came. However, the IDF was ahead of them: Just a few minutes following the targeting and killing of Jabari, the second wave of air strikes was already underway and within a quarter of an hour, virtually the entire lineup of Fajr-5 rockets was eliminated.

Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/security/01/11/extensive-hunt-down-and-eliminat.html#ixzz2Ch2RSKzy

IDF Tracked Rockets From Iran to HamasGAZA CITY (Ma'an) -- An Israeli airstrike damaged two media headquarters in Gaza City early Sunday, injuring at least six journalists, witnesses said.

Khader al-Zahhar, a cameraman with al-Quds TV, had a leg amputated due to injuries sustained in the attack.

The Al-Shawa building, struck in the early hours, houses a number of media organizations, including Ma'an News Agency's headquarters in the Gaza Strip.

A Ma'an correspondent said the impact was focused on the eleventh floor, where the office of al-Quds TV is located.

At least six journalists were moderately injured, five of whom were identified as Darwish Bulbul, Ibrahim Labed, Muhammad al-Akhras and Hazem al-Daour, all al-Quds TV employees.

An Israeli army spokesman said forces targeted the antennae of the building. He said it was used by Hamas for carrying out terror activities.

A second Israeli airstrike around 7 a.m. hit a second media complex in Gaza City , the al-Shuruq building.

Sky News Arabia and Al-Arabiya reported that their offices have been affected. There were no initial reports of injuries.

An Israeli army statement said both offices were targeted because they are part of "Hamas' operational communications." The military said "forces targeted roof communication devices to minimize damage."

PLO official Saeb Erekat strongly condemned the two strikes. "This attack on journalists and freedom of expression reflects Israel’s disdain for international law and the little value it affords the lives of Palestinians," he said in a statement.

"Last Thursday, the Israeli Government Spokesperson said that there is no free media in Gaza, which is an insult to the brave journalists covering the situation from there. It would now seem that some Israelis want to make sure that there is no free media in Gaza."

Hamas' Al-Qassam Brigades also blamed Israel for "trying to kill the power of word in Gaza," in a Twitter post.

Palestinian National Initiative leader Mustafa Barghouti said Israel was "trying to frighten the press and media so they won't report" and said targeting the press was a war crime.

"This is a intentional Israeli crime to silence the voice of Palestinian and international media in Gaza. Israel is trying to claim that there is no free media in Gaza. They are insulting the media," Barghouti told Ma'an.

Israel's army said later on Sunday it had "gained control of Hamas radio waves" broadcasting in the Gaza Strip.

A military spokeswoman refused to comment further on the purpose and content of the broadcasts, or its relation to the two earlier strikes on media headquarters in Gaza City.

Israeli news site Ynet reported that the army is using frequencies to send message's to Gaza's bombarded population, including asking citizens to stay away from targeted sites.