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Sa-id
and son
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It never occurred to Um Hussain as she scolded her little 6-year-old grandson
Sa-id for playing around with the household appliances that this playful little
child would become a future hero and that his curiosity was but the beginning of
innovation. It never crossed her mind that this child who left her side years
ago would become none other than the inventor of AlQassam 2: the first
Palestinian made, invented and launched missile.
Child
Inventor
Sa-id
Hussain Awad was brought up on the streets of AlShaboora refugee camp in
Rafah along the border with Egypt. Born on March 7th 1977, he took his first
steps and spent his childhood in this camp. We spoke to his grandmother Um
Hussain from her modest home (made of asbestos), her face showing the
wear and tear of her 70 years that include her flight from her hometown in
1948 up until this latest Intifada. Before speaking to us her eyes gazed to
a far off place as she thought of her dear grandson. “He was beautiful and
playful, he hated oppression. He did not attack anyone or wish to be
attacked and he was obedient to his father and family ever since he was a
child.” She continued to speak as she pointed to the camp’s local
mosque. “Despite his young age he attended the local mosque (AlFarooq)
with his father and uncle and he would spend every summer vacation at the
mosque’s summer camp. He was known for his love of order and
discipline.” A smile appeared on her face as she continued. “Sa-id
always wanted to be in command even as a child. While playing with his
friends he was always the one in charge. They would gather around him as he
assigned roles and positions to each one of them for the game. He always
started the game and he was always the one to end it.”
This
was not the child’s only concern, although he liked to play with his
friends and was always the one in charge; he had a very characteristic way
of playing. His uncle Abd AlHady Ahmed Awad told us, “Sa-id was a playful,
energetic child. He loved fixing old electrical appliances like radios and
transformers. His favorite toys were his tools (hammer and pliers etc.).
Before he and his family were forced to move to the West Bank in 1983 and
even before he had reached the age of 6, his favorite pastime was taking
electrical appliances apart and putting them back together again.” His
uncle continued as he recalled Sa-id’s childhood. “I remember Sa-id
being scolded more than once by his father for destroying one piece of
equipment or other such as a radio or an alarm clock.”
Although
Sa-id loved to explore everything that made its way to his hands, this
playfulness was not a waste of time but would come to be rather rewarding.
It was easy to see despite his young age his potential to become a bright
inventor. His uncle Abd AlHady told us about his early inventions. “Sa-id
was very creative in making a particular toy known as (Istakooza) in the
Gaza district, known for its loud firecracker like sound. He was the first
to transfer it to the West Bank where it is known by the name of (AlDafasha).
AlDafasha is hand-operated and made of a nail that is pushed forcefully into
a small area filled with matches. This leads to a very loud sound resembling
a firecracker. Sa-id did not stop there but went on to make a more advanced
model by fixing a long pipe onto a piece of wood and making a trigger out of
a piece of iron attached to a spring which fires one bullet with each
shot.”
Sa-id’s
playfulness and love for exploration continued with him as he moved to the
Tolkarm refugee camp in the West Bank where he finished his primary and
intermediate school years at the Wakalet AlGhawth School after which he had
to leave school to help his father earn a living for the family, the same
fate as thousands of other young Palestinians.
The
Freedom Fighter
Despite
his tender age, Sa-id played a distinctive role in the first Intifada. As a
result, and although he was only 14, he was detained and questioned by the
authorities. He did not yield under the pressure and was released from
prison with his head held high.
His
imposing character became more evident in 1991 when he was in command of a
group of young Palestinians belonging to the Hamas resistance movement
against the Israeli occupation. Together they targeted Israeli military
points using burning bottles and shooting at them using (AlDafasha) made by
Sa-id. Although this lead to his being shot in the foot it did not stop him
from continuing his fight against the Israeli occupation, rather he
continued using more advanced and sophisticated methods.
He
threw himself into battle amongst the other freedom fighters in the Islamic
movement Hamas, where he found what he was looking for concerning these
methods of resistance in the military branch of Hamas known as Kat-ib Ezz
AlDeen AlQassam. He was soon arrested in 1994 and imprisoned for 4 years for
being accused of commanding a cell of the Kata-ib ezz AlDeen AlQassam group
in the Tolkarm area. In prison he was a model of patience and faith in Allah
despite the severity of the methods used by the intelligence agency to force
him to confess. He was loved by all those accompanying him in prison who
continued to remember him as their sweet, gentle companion even after his
release.
He
was released in 1998 only to be rearrested by the Palestinian Authorities
where he was inhumanely questioned and then sent to Jinaid prison in Nablis
where he joined three of his brothers in martyrdom, AlShaikh Jamal Mansour
and AlShaikh Youssef AlSerekgy and his friend Muhammed Rehan all of whom
preceded him to martyrdom. It was here that Sa-id felt the imminence of that
which he had long awaited; for he was heard saying when asked about his
detainment in Jinaid prison, “Whoever enters Jinaid prison and is then
released should prepare himself for martyrdom because the security
regulations show no mercy.” His saying soon proved accurate since over 70%
of all those imprisoned with Sa-id in Jinaid prison are either wanted or
imprisoned by the Israelis or have become martyrs after being assassinated
following their release.
After
13 months of detainment Sa-id was released from AlJinaid prison. He married
in the beginning of 2001 and his wife gave birth to a baby boy whom he named
Hamza. His marriage did not prevent him from continuing the battle against
the occupation during this latest Intifada. He was shot again while
defending his town of Tolkarm at the start of the 2001 Intifada.
AlQassam
2 Missile
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Qassam
2 missiles are thought to have a range of up to 10 km.
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Sa-id’s never resting mind was not satisfied with the mere throwing of
rocks or marching in protest. He continued to think of more effective ways
of removing the occupying army from his sacred land until at last he thought
of a way to improve, produce and design AlQassam 2 missiles that surpass
AlQassam 1 missiles, and are capable of reaching the heart of the Israeli
occupied territories. This news markedly disturbed the Israelis who in
response threatened to build a safety belt along the Palestinian border.
They also threatened to respond in a brutal manner if any of these missiles
were to be launched.
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Features
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AlQassam
1 missiles
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AlQassam
2 missiles
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Length
of missile
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70
cm
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180
cm
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Range
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2-3
Kilometers
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7-9
Kilometers
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Amount
of TNT carried in missile head
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600
gm
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5-6
kg
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Radius
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8
cm
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12
cm
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No
changes were made regarding the mode of launch of AlQassam2 missiles, with
the exception of enlarging the launching pad to suit the larger missile,
however there is no means of controlling or directing the missile after
being launched.
The
Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth obtained information from Israeli
security sources about the manufacture of AlQassam 2 missiles in some Nablus
city workshops. Based on the analysis of the seized artillery, the missiles
were being manufactured from steel cylinders to which the wings of the
missile are attached at one end while at the other is attached a pointed
steel head which encases the explosive material. The cylinder contains as
much as 5 kilograms of TNT while the base contains a mixture of explosive
material which when ignited generates a force that would allow the missile
to reach a distance of 10 kilometers.
After
seizing a load of missiles between the cities of Nablus and Jenin, General
Girshon Yitzhak the commander of the Israeli forces in the West Bank said
that contrary to what they had previously believed, the range of this new
missile can reach as far as 10-12 kilometers rather than the previously
assumed 8 kilometers depending on the amount of explosives it holds and the
form of the missile.
Sa-id,
positive that the Israeli forces were now after him, wanted to spread this
new technology to the largest number of freedom fighters possible before
being killed. He carefully selected several of his devoted compatriots in
the various towns of the West Bank and went on to teach them how to
manufacture and launch these missiles. He started at the Balata refugee camp
in Nablus, passing through Jenin, Tolkarm, Tobas and several other towns and
cities leaving his secret behind with several others, a fact later confirmed
by Kataib Ezz AlDin AlQassam.
The
Final Battle
Sa-id
joined his fellow combatants in their struggle against the occupying army at
the Balata refugee camp causing casualties among the Israeli soldiers. He
left Balata only after the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation after which
he resided in Jenin to continue his battle together with General Qais Udwan
Abu Jabal, the orchestrator of AlQassam’s operations in Jenin who is also
wanted by the Israeli army.
His
death became imminent when the occupation army forced their way into Jenin
for the second time. He and his brothers in Islam fought bravely as
acknowledged by the residents of Jenin ending in many casualties after which
he left for Tobas (in the vicinity of Jenin) together with 5 of his
brothers, where they began to prepare for the enemy once again.
On
Friday morning April 5th 2002, Sa-id and his brothers were surrounded by the
Israeli forces while in the house of Palestinian hero, Ashraf Daraghima, in
Tobas. They courageously resisted the tanks, planes, and hundreds of Israeli
soldiers for more than 5 hours. The sun was to set that day leaving behind 6
bodies, blown to pieces by American made planes. Those 6 courageous men were
Sa-id Hussain Awad, Qais Udwan Abu Jabal, Magdy Muhammed Samir, Muhammed
Ahmed Kamil, Ashraf Hamdy Daraghma and Munqith Muhammed Sawafta. We may have
lost Sa-id but not before he left behind something to remind us of him and
also to remind the Israelis of his boldness. Sa-id is gone now but he left
behind AlQassam 2.
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