Marks on the Israeli town of Sderot

The qassam rockets fired on the Israeli town of Sderot have left their mark, in many senses. The mayor of the town showed us the photographs of the eight people who have been killed. He told us of the children who can't sleep and are scared, of the empty parks and streets in the town.

He also told us of the long-term impact the qassams have had on Sderot: 20% of the town's businesses have closed, and it is difficult to attract people to work in the town.

Piles of exploded qassams lie in the parking lot of the police station -- a graphic reminder of what the townhouse had to endure. These crude, homemade guided weapons cannot be accurately targeted.

Our next stop was a local school. The kids there were like in any other school, except that they talked of fear rather than hope. The kids told us of how the Qassams scare them. In a classroom, a boy told us how his cousin was injured by a Qassam. Yet they know what they want; when asked, a little 8-year-old girl said "I want there to be a time when no rockets are flying."

http://blogs.amnesty.org/blogs/israelot_dec06/2006/12/07/1165481460000.html

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