6 May 2019. This Statement has been updated to reflect the number of casualties and rockets fired from Gaza at Israeli civilians.
7 May 2019. The names of all four victims who lost their lives as a result of terror and total injuries have been updated and included below.
The Zionist Federation of Australia (ZFA) has condemned the barrage of more than 700 rockets fired from Gaza, killing 60-year-old man and father of four, Moshe Agadi, Moshe Feder, 64, Ziad Alhamamda and 21-year-old Pinchas Menachem Prezuazman.
President of the Zionist Federation of Australia, Jeremy Leibler said “Palestinian terror organisations Hamas and Islamic Jihad have the blood of innocent Israeli civilians on their hands. Over the past few days, southern Israel has been bombarded with incessant rocket attacks which have resulted in multiple deaths and injury to tens of civilians.”
“In addition to civilians who have sustained physical injuries from shrapnel, many of the injured are also being treated for anxiety. This is an unfortunate reminder of the deep psychological trauma which is ever-present in southern Israel where civilians are regularly forced to take shelter from Hamas attacks.”
“Hamas is committing a double war crime. Not only is Hamas targeting Israeli civilians, but it is firing its rockets from densely populated civilian areas in Gaza and using its inhabitants as human shields. The international community’s silence in the wake of these warm crimes is deafening.”
“If not for the Iron Dome air defence system, many more innocent Israeli civilians would have been murdered at the hands of Palestinian terror. We are thankful to the brave soldiers of the IDF and the Iron Dome which have ensured that the number of casualties was significantly lower.”
“Our thoughts are with the families of Moshe Agadi, Moshe Feder, Ziad Alhamamda, Pinchas Menachem Prezuazman as well as the people of southern Israel who have been bombarded with hundreds of terrifying rockets over the past few days,” Mr Leibler concluded.
For media enquiries please contact:
Jeremy Leibler, President – +61 417 382 387, jleibler@abl.com.au
Ariel Zohar, Media and Advocacy Director – +61 425 872 296, ariel@zfa.com.au