The Jews of Gaza, who have stood up to well over 4,000 rockets during the course of the Oslo War, have faced, since last night, one of the heaviest onslaughts to date. One rocket hit the car of the already-stricken Cohen family of Kfar Darom.

The Jews of Gaza, who have stood up to well over 4,000 rockets and mortar shells over the past 3.5 years of the Oslo War, have been made to face since last night one of the heaviest onslaughts to date. Five Kassam rockets were fired at Nisanit in northern Gaza, leaving one man wounded in moderate condition, and another six missiles landed just outside the Gaza fence, in the Nachal Oz area. Later this morning, another three Kassams were fired at Nisanit, hitting a home and a restaurant in the town. No one was hurt in the second wave.

Most poignantly, the home of the Cohen family in Kfar Darom was damaged in a rocket attack shortly after midnight. It will be recalled that three Cohen children lost limbs in a bus bombing over three years ago; two teachers were killed in that attack. This time, the family car was hit by a missile, and several house windows were broken.

In a CD film being shown these very days to Likud Party members in antic ipation of the upcoming referendum on the Gaza expulsion plan, Mrs. Nogah Cohen is shown holding one of her children and speaking of her family’s hesitations as to where to live after the attack. They spent several months in the Tel Aviv area because of the frequent hospital treatments, “and we knew without question that when it was over, we would return here, to our home. But then this plague of the mortar shells began. We had a difficult time deciding, because we were worried that the children might be scared, and what would happen if one would hit us, etc. But finally we decided that we would return home - and now [with a big smile], thank G-d, we are here, and happy, and we know we did the right thing.”

“Everyone woke up from the noise of the rocket,” said 12-year-old Tehillah today, who lost two fingers and both her legs in the bus bombing in 2000, “except for me. They were frightened, but now everything is back to its regular happy state.” Her neighbors in Kfar Darom took time off this morning from their door-to-door anti-disengagement-plan campaign in the Negev city of Ofakim to help replace the Cohens’ damaged windows

This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 20th, 2004 and is filed under hotnews.