Israel is between a rock and a hard place when it comes to Gaza. The major
attack last week in which 8 Israelis were ambushed and killed on the road to
Eilat was perpetrated by the Gaza Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) that
are an ally of Hamas. That night the IAF hit specific targets in Gaza and
killed the two main leaders of the PRC. So there is a distinct difference
between Palestinian and Israeli tactics, the Palestinians kill civilians
randomly while Israel targets the perpetrators very precisely. I like to
point out these differences so that people know that the two sides are not
morally equivalent.
But, then a barrage of 120 rockets were fired at Israel in a week, and
Israel had to respond. The terrorist groups in Gaza keep firing rockets
into southern Israel, while Hamas denies that it is their responsibility.
Since the Islamic Jihad announced that it did not respect the informal
ceasefire mediated by Egypt, the IAF then hit several IJ sites and killed at
least two firing squads, including a pinpoint strike on a team on a
motorbike. One of the leaders of IJ was also killed. They vowed revenge
and continued firing rockets after the ceasefire was supposed to go into
effect. So another ceasefire was mediated, but that too was broken.
Although several rockets hit Beersheba, where our daughter and family live,
and one man was killed and several people injured, the Iron Dome
anti-missile system worked and took out two Grad rockets before they could
hit Beersheba again (even though there are only two partial systems
deployed). It is certainly better to have a defensive shield, however
expensive, than go to a ground war, that would cost a lot more and take many
lives. But, for how long can the Israeli Government sustain allowing its
territory being targeted and its citizen's lives endangered.
The Netanyahu Government is inclined to attack Gaza and remove the firing of
rockets at its source. But, its hand are tied right now because the
Palestine Authority (PA) in an unstable union with Gaza is about to go to
the UN and request unilateral recognition of its Statehood, that is a
potential game-changer. The Israeli Government wants to wait and see how
things will develop after that, rather than being caught up in a ground war,
however justified, that would certainly unleash negative opinions around the
world at the same time. So we are waiting.
There is no doubt that the PA will get the votes it needs in the General
Assembly, but not in the Security Council. That leaves the matter
unresolved and it could be interpreted both ways. No doubt the PA will
interpret it to mean that their State is recognized, but the question is
what will they do about it. Will they also unleash violence against Israel,
will they use large crowds to try to overwhelm the IDF defences, will the
terrorists in Gaza unleash another barrage of long-range rockets? If that
is the case, then there will be another ground war and Israel will
unilaterally annex territories that it considers its own. So we are in a
waiting mode and meanwhile the Government can only make tactical responses
to the current situation. That is why FM Barak is ready to apologise to
Egypt for the killing of 5 Egyptian soldiers in Sinai, even though they were
probably killed in a firefight with the terrorists. We must bite our
tongues until the moment of clarity arrives
By Jack Cohen
attack last week in which 8 Israelis were ambushed and killed on the road to
Eilat was perpetrated by the Gaza Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) that
are an ally of Hamas. That night the IAF hit specific targets in Gaza and
killed the two main leaders of the PRC. So there is a distinct difference
between Palestinian and Israeli tactics, the Palestinians kill civilians
randomly while Israel targets the perpetrators very precisely. I like to
point out these differences so that people know that the two sides are not
morally equivalent.
But, then a barrage of 120 rockets were fired at Israel in a week, and
Israel had to respond. The terrorist groups in Gaza keep firing rockets
into southern Israel, while Hamas denies that it is their responsibility.
Since the Islamic Jihad announced that it did not respect the informal
ceasefire mediated by Egypt, the IAF then hit several IJ sites and killed at
least two firing squads, including a pinpoint strike on a team on a
motorbike. One of the leaders of IJ was also killed. They vowed revenge
and continued firing rockets after the ceasefire was supposed to go into
effect. So another ceasefire was mediated, but that too was broken.
Although several rockets hit Beersheba, where our daughter and family live,
and one man was killed and several people injured, the Iron Dome
anti-missile system worked and took out two Grad rockets before they could
hit Beersheba again (even though there are only two partial systems
deployed). It is certainly better to have a defensive shield, however
expensive, than go to a ground war, that would cost a lot more and take many
lives. But, for how long can the Israeli Government sustain allowing its
territory being targeted and its citizen's lives endangered.
The Netanyahu Government is inclined to attack Gaza and remove the firing of
rockets at its source. But, its hand are tied right now because the
Palestine Authority (PA) in an unstable union with Gaza is about to go to
the UN and request unilateral recognition of its Statehood, that is a
potential game-changer. The Israeli Government wants to wait and see how
things will develop after that, rather than being caught up in a ground war,
however justified, that would certainly unleash negative opinions around the
world at the same time. So we are waiting.
There is no doubt that the PA will get the votes it needs in the General
Assembly, but not in the Security Council. That leaves the matter
unresolved and it could be interpreted both ways. No doubt the PA will
interpret it to mean that their State is recognized, but the question is
what will they do about it. Will they also unleash violence against Israel,
will they use large crowds to try to overwhelm the IDF defences, will the
terrorists in Gaza unleash another barrage of long-range rockets? If that
is the case, then there will be another ground war and Israel will
unilaterally annex territories that it considers its own. So we are in a
waiting mode and meanwhile the Government can only make tactical responses
to the current situation. That is why FM Barak is ready to apologise to
Egypt for the killing of 5 Egyptian soldiers in Sinai, even though they were
probably killed in a firefight with the terrorists. We must bite our
tongues until the moment of clarity arrives
By Jack Cohen
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