With Gaza rockets reaching Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and even further north to Hadera, five-million Israelis are now in range of Hamas’ arsenal, the Israel Defense Forces told The Tower on July 9.

For a second day, residents of Israel’s largest cities went running for cover as terrorists targeted them during the morning rush hour.

The increased sophistication of Hamas’ weapons was the subject of a conference call organized by The Israel Project with Uzi Rubin, former director of Israel’s Missile Defense Organization in the Ministry of Defense.

“One type of rocket is the 4-inch, what they call M-75…it’s a rocket probably designed for the Gaza factions and its range is anywhere from 75-80 kilometers (46-50 miles). That’s the one that’s fired at Tel Aviv and Jerusalem.

“It now seems from the single example in Hadera…that this is the Syrian 302mm rocket, with a potential range of about 150, 160 kilometers (93-99 miles).”

In addition, Gaza-based terrorists have 122mm grads that fly some 25 miles and are used to target Beersheba and Ashdod, Israel’s two largest southern cities.

For the last 13 years, according to Rubin, terrorists have also fired home-made rockets with a range of some seven miles.

Much of the weapons supply originated in Syria and Iran and was smuggled into Gaza during the two-years the Muslim Brotherhood was in charge of Egypt and failed to clamp down on the smuggling or rockets into the Palestinian coastal enclave, said Rubin.

[Photo: paffairs San Francisco]