Five Rockets Hit Typically 'Safe" Israeli City of Eliat, Egyptians Deny Possibility It Came From Sinai

The southern Israeli tourist city of Eliat was rocked this morning by five rockets - one of those injured four Jordanians. Eliat is typically not susceptible to these kinds of attacks with rocket attacks only having taken place here a couple of times in the past five years. The Egyptians were quick to deny that the rockets came from the Sinai - the most logical place.

Here's some of the report from The Jerusalem Post:

Egyptian officials Monday denied that the five rockets which fell near Eilat during the morning were fired from Sinai, a statement that ran counter to initial Israeli reports on the attack.

"No rockets were launched from the Sinai," said Egyptian sources. "To launch rockets from Egypt, it takes equipment and complicated logistical preparations. It is impossible, since the Sinai Peninsula has heavy security."

The rockets landed in the area around Eilat Monday morning, one of which injured four people in nearby Jordan, in front of the Intercontinental Hotel. One of the casualties was in serious condition, the other three were lightly wounded.

A second rocket also landed on the Jordanian side of the border, a third north of Eilat's hotel area, and two more in the Red Sea. The projectiles were Grad-type Katyushas, suspected to have been launched from the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.

I don't know about you but the Egyptian claim that this attack couldn't have come from their area because it takes too much equipment and such, is ludicrous - these were katyusha rockets and apparently the Egyptians haven't seen film of Hamas shooting these off - it certainly doesn't take long and you don't exactly need a few elaborate missile launchers.

And besides, if they didn't come from the Sinai, then where did they come from?

Egypt: 'Impossible' that rockets were fired from Sinai


Egyptian officials Monday denied that the five rockets which fell near Eilat during the morning were fired from Sinai, a statement that ran counter to initial Israeli reports on the attack.

"No rockets were launched from the Sinai," said Egyptian sources. "To launch rockets from Egypt, it takes equipment and complicated logistical preparations. It is impossible, since the Sinai Peninsula has heavy security."

The rockets landed in the area around Eilat Monday morning, one of which injured four people in nearby Jordan, in front of the Intercontinental Hotel. One of the casualties was in serious condition, the other three were lightly wounded.

A second rocket also landed on the Jordanian side of the border, a third north of Eilat's hotel area, and two more in the Red Sea. The projectiles were Grad-type Katyushas, suspected to have been launched from the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt.

According to an IDF statement, soldiers were scouring the area to determine the source of the attacks, which was unclear. The IDF was in contact with the Jordanian and Egyptian armies regarding the incident.

Rocket attacks in Eilat are rare but not unheard of, with two attacks having occurred in the last five years.

In April, two rockets fired landed in Eilat and the adjacent Jordanian port of Aqaba.

In 2005 a rocket fired from Jordan landed next to the Eilat airport and two others missed a US Navy vessel docked at the nearby Jordanian port of Aqaba. No one was reported hurt. A group linked with al- Qaida claimed responsibility for the attack.

In January 2007, a deadly attack by a Palestinian suicide bomber in Eilat killed three men working at a bakery. Both Islamic Jihad and al-Aqsa Martyrs claimed responsibility for the attack.