Israel rejects criticism of gasoline fire-engine plans.

Israel has strongly rejected international concerns about its recent decision to substitute water in its fleet of fire-engines for gasoline. According to Israeli authorities, the measure was taken "In order to demonstrate to fire Israel's unyielding will and determination." In a statement released yesterday, Israeli authorities also stated that "Fire is a genuine threat and for too long, we have relied on water to extinguish it. We will not go back to using water until fire realises the futility of being fire."


However, the new plans have met with criticism even inside Israel. A woman in Tel Aviv recently called local fire services to extinguish a small kitchen fire, only to have her house blasted to cinder. However, the Israeli fire services dismissed the complaint, stating "The fire met with overwhelming force until it was defeated. The world should not judge our fires as they are completely different from fires anywhere else in the world. Ours are hateful and threaten our existence. This is our problem, and we ask the world to back off."