Jimmy Carter was given a “souvenir” tail from a Kassam rocket on his visit to the rocket-ravaged town of Sderot in southern Israel on Monday. CNSNews:
Just days before he is supposed to meet with Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal in Damascus, Syria, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter criticized Palestinian rocket attacks on civilians in southern Israel.
"I think it's a despicable crime for any deliberate effort to be made to kill innocent civilians, and my hope is there will be a cease-fire soon," Carter said during a visit Monday to the rocket-ravaged town of Sderot. (One Kassam rocket slammed into an open area near Sderot on Monday, the army said.)
Although some senior Israeli officials have snubbed Carter -- refusing to meet with him -- a Foreign Ministry representative in Sderot, Jonathan Peled, said it was important for Carter to visit Sderot.
"The fact that Carter came to Sderot is basically important - for him to see the terrible situation in Sderot and the conditions [under which the residents are living]," Peled told Cybercast News Service.
Carter was shown a house that was hit by a Kassam rocket, the remains of rockets and he also visited an overlook that shows just how close the Gaza Strip is to Israel, said Peled.
Carter also received a "souvenir" - the tail of a Kassam rocket, with an inscription from Sderot Mayor Eli Moyal.
"To President Carter: A momento of the thousands of Kassam rockets that were shot at Sderot and the region and caused the death of many innocent civilians. With hope for peace and tranquility in the near future," read the inscription, written in Hebrew.
Moyal was one of the few Israeli officials to meet with Carter on his trip here. He said he does not believe that Carter's upcoming meeting with Mashaal will bring "calm and peace" nor advance Israel's interests.
The above photo (credit: ynetnews.com) shows a Palestinian-fired Kassam rocket that landed at Ashkelon School in Southern Israel.
