· Hundreds of neighbours join first successful action · Air force calls off missile attack to protect civilians Palestinians yesterday stopped Israel from destroying the home of two militants by surrounding it with a human shield. In the first incident of its kind, hundreds of neighbours surrounded the home of Mohammed Baroud and climbed on its roof after he received a call from the Israeli army informing him he had 30 minutes to vacate his home before it was destroyed by missiles. The Israeli airforce called off its strike because of the risk of killing a large number of civilians. It is the first time Palestinians have thwarted an Israeli air strike in this way. Israel has developed a strategy of telephoning its targets to ensure that nobody is inside when the homes are struck. Residents are given about half an hour to gather some clothes and escape. Neighbours are also contacted if the explosion is likely to be big enough to endanger them. Dozens of homes have been blown up on suspicion that they are the site for a smuggling tunnel or arms cache. It is likely that Israel will have to find a new way of destroying homes as yesterday's protest began to be copied elsewhere.
Palestinians yesterday stopped Israel from destroying the home of two militants by surrounding it with a human shield.
In the first incident of its kind, hundreds of neighbours surrounded the home of Mohammed Baroud and climbed on its roof after he received a call from the Israeli army informing him he had 30 minutes to vacate his home before it was destroyed by missiles.
The Israeli airforce called off its strike because of the risk of killing a large number of civilians.
It is the first time Palestinians have thwarted an Israeli air strike in this way. Israel has developed a strategy of telephoning its targets to ensure that nobody is inside when the homes are struck. Residents are given about half an hour to gather some clothes and escape. Neighbours are also contacted if the explosion is likely to be big enough to endanger them.
Dozens of homes have been blown up on suspicion that they are the site for a smuggling tunnel or arms cache. It is likely that Israel will have to find a new way of destroying homes as yesterday's protest began to be copied elsewhere.
It is likely that Israel will have to find a new way of destroying homes
"Will have to".
And this isn't the Weekly Standard, the Wall Street Journal, or even the Telegraph, this is friggin' pro-Palestinian Guardian.
Utterly disgusting. And not a word about the illegality of these IDF 'tactics'. *Lunatic*, n. One whose delusions are out of fashion.
