Ground op coming?
What a difference being in an election campaign makes! Earlier this evening, I noted that at the outset of the Second Lebanon War we waited for a ground operation that came much too late. But with an election campaign on in Israel right now, no one wants to be blamed for an inconclusive war in Gaza. So the ground campaign is apparently on the way.The IDF was beefing up forces around the Gaza Strip on Saturday evening in preparation of a possible ground operation following a massive air assault earlier in the day.Given Hamas' underground tunnels, it should be clear that to defeat Hamas, Israel must mount a ground invasion. It cannot be done from the air alone.
Defense Minister Ehud Barak and IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi were holding consultations on the army's next course of action.
Defense officials estimated that Hamas was capable of firing 150-200 rockets a day, adding that the operation could last for weeks.
Israel's goals, officials added, was to end Hamas rocket fire, end smuggling of arms into Gaza and severely disrupt any Hamas military activity.
YNet adds:
Barak laid out the three objectives of the offensive – dealing Hamas a forceful blow, fundamentally changing the situation in Gaza, and bringing to the cessation of rocket attacks against Israeli citizens.And if it causes the elections to be postponed so that his party can recover in the polls, he won't cry about that either.
"There is a time for calm and there is a time for fighting, and now is the time for fighting. The operation will expand as necessary," said Barak.
"I don't want to mislead anyone. This won't be easy and it won't be short, but we must be determined," he added. "The time has come to act. We do not go to this clash gladly, but neither are we afraid of it. We will not let terrorists hurt our citizens or soldiers. We will do what is necessary. For weeks Hamas and its affiliates lobbed Qassams and Grads and mortar shells on the towns and communities of the South. We have no intention of allowing this situation to continue."
The time to act has long since passed. Israel will unfortunately likely pay a high price for its delay in acting.
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 9:14 PM
3 Comments:
Gaza must be completely reoccupied and Hamas eliminated root and branch. There is no alternative to R&D. Any other strategy will endanger Israel's security.
But first - raze to the ground from the air and leave no one alive. And when Israel does finally enter, kill all who show the slightest sign of resistance. The survivors, such as there are, should be offered the choice of conversion to Judaism or expulsion. This was the Maccabees' strategy.
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