Hamas has recently test-fired a rocket capable of reaching Tel Aviv from the Gaza Strip, a senior Israeli general said on Tuesday. The Iranian made rocket has a range of about 60 kilometres, said Major General Amos Yadlin, head of military intelligence.
According to AFP, he told a closed-door meeting of parliament's foreign affairs and defense committee that Hamas gunners successfully test-fired the rocket out to sea.
However, Hamas called the claim a "fabrication." "This is a pre-emptive step by the Zionist enemy to influence international opinion ahead of the General Assembly's discussion of the Goldstone report," Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhum said. "This crisis has pushed the Zionist enemy to create these kinds of fabrications," he added.
Yadlin said that although Hamas is trying to expand its arsenal, it does not appear ready for another conflict with Israel following last winter's war.
© 2009 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
