Sderot mayor urges harsher Gaza response, says Israel giving ‘immunity to terrorists’

Some local leaders in the south criticize the government for what they view as insufficient action against Gazan terrorists who have been barraging their towns with rockets, including over 40 during the night.

“We must put it on the table — there are no dead terrorists in Gaza,” says Alon Davidi, mayor of the town of Sderot which is among the most targeted areas and where a house was directly hit overnight. “This means that this policy of granting immunity to terrorists who are making our lives miserable is continuing.

“I understand that the reality is complicated because this is happening in Lebanon and in our area, but this rocket isn’t the first. For months, we have been in a reality of ‘trickles’ [of rocket fire],” he says.

“To change this equation, we must do other things. It’s time for the government and the prime minister to adopt a policy of eliminating them,” he demands, noting the wide-scale anti-terror campaign going on for many months in the West Bank.

Several other mayors of local and regional councils in the south are quoted by Hebrew media as saying that only targeted assassinations of Gazan terror operatives will “restore deterrence.”

Tamir Idan, head of the Sdot Negev Regional Council, says the “measured response” overnight “doesn’t restore deterrence and conveys a bad message to terrorists in Gaza and Lebanon.” He too urges targeted killings and says he expects “decisive and painful” action soon.