Another example of the folly of retreating in the face of Islamic terrorism, as the ruins of two large synagogues in evacuated Jewish communities in Gaza are now being used by Palestinians as rocket launch sites.

When Israel withdrew from the Gaza in August, 2005, it left intact 20 synagogues of the Gush Katif Jewish communities following an Israeli Cabinet decision against demolishing the structures. Immediately after the Israeli evacuation was completed, Palestinian Arabs destroyed most of the Gaza synagogues.

Speaking to The New York Sun from Gaza, a spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, Abu Abir, said the area in which the synagogues once stood is now used to fire rockets at Israel. “We are proud to turn these lands, especially these parts that were for long time the symbol of occupation and injustice, like the synagogue, into a military base and source of fire against the Zionists and the Zionist entity,” Mr. Abir said.

Mr. Abir blamed the Jewish state for the desecration of the Gaza synagogues by Palestinian Arabs, claiming the decision to leave the structures intact was part of an Israeli conspiracy. Israel “left the synagogues behind so the world would see the Palestinians destroying them,” Mr. Abir said.

And as we pointed out last October, the high-tech greenhouses built by Israelis, that formerly provided employment for many Palestinians, have been looted, burned, and turned into cover for weapons smuggling tunnels.

Before:

After:

In this picture released by Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), an Israeli soldier stands guard next to a tunnel during an operation near Rafah, southern Gaza strip, October 18, 2006. Israeli troops killed four Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and widened a four-month-old offensive by sending tanks to take up positions around the Rafah border crossing with Egypt. REUTERS/IDF/Handout

UPDATE at 2/27/07 11:57:30 am:

This post was buried almost instantly at Digg, by the anti-truth forces.