Gaza residents support launching rockets despite getting hit by one

“Life in Beit Sahour was about to resume after a long night during which people stayed up to follow the news from Gaza, when a huge explosion shook the city. It soon became clear that the explosion had been caused by a [Palestinian] rocket that had fallen on the home of the Issa Atoun family in the center of town. The last thing the city’s residents, who demonstrate every evening against the aggression in Gaza, had expected was to become involved in the battle minutes before the ceasefire came into effect, when the resistance launched rocket barrages at the settlements near Jerusalem… The rocket partially destroyed the top floors of the house, and caused a blackout in part of the city of Beit Sahour. There were no casualties, which prompted the residents to say, ‘[better our] property than the children.’ But where did the rocket come from? The immediate answer was that it was one of the resistance’s rockets, but this was a source of unease for many residents, who enthusiastically support these rockets. Nonetheless, they said that, as long as people are not hurt, they are ready to sacrifice everything for the resistance. Hana Qumsiyeh, a pensioner, said: ‘The loudness of the rocket blast indicates what panic the Zionists must have felt when [the rockets] fell among them. We hope that in the future, the rockets will be more accurate.’”