Mowing the lawn
"Mowing the lawn" is the phrase the IDF gives to its occasional incursions into Gaza, in order to reduce the number of terrorists and interrupt any plans for attacks into Israel. Since the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit on June 28, IDF incursions into Gaza have killed 220 Palestinians, injured many and destroyed numerous facilities and tunnels. However, while this has prevented any suicide bombings from Gaza, the Kassam rockets keep coming into Israel at a rate of roughly 5 a day. If they have no money to pay their employees where do Hamas get the money for the rockets?
Yesterday three Israelis were injured in Sderot and the day before the electricity supply was interrupted there by a hit. So far the IDF have not found a way to stop the firing of these very mobile short range rockets, but they have gotten better at it. Now they know that most of the lauchings are done with timers, so noone is present at the time, but they go back to retrieve the launchers to use them again, and that's when a lot of the terrorists are caught red-handed and killed. Also, groups of men preparing to leave a location with launchers and rockets in their cars/vans are often hit by missiles, leading to secondary explosions. This weekend in one incursion with tanks and infantry the IDF was engaged by Hamas gunmen and 15 were killed while the IDF suffered no casualties itself. So "mowing the lawn" keeps the enemy off balance and punishes them, but does not stop hostilties. Neither has it helped in getting Shalit back, although the IDF has announced that these punishing incursions will stop once he is released.
The international media almost ignores the continued fighting in Gaza, as if after the war in Lebanon the Middle East has had its moment of fame, its share of media attention for a while. The Palestinians are, of course, angry that no one seems to show them sympathy, but they are still holding Shalit, and the Hamas Government, both PM Haniyeh in Gaza and Khaled Mashaal in Damascus, have announced over and over again that it will not recognize Israel's right to exist. Maybe even the international media are fed up with them.
There are also confliciting statements of whether or not a "Unity Government" is possible in the PA. Hamas seems to want to keep the illusion alive, so that they can hold out hope of international or European funding, even without accepting the three conditions of the Quartet. But, Pres. Abbas and Fatah are now generally pessimistic about the possibility. However, as soon as he moves to dissolve the current Hamas Government or does anything else it could result in an expansion of the current clashes into a civil war. On the other hand, Abbas has said in Arabic (not reported in the West) that as far as he is concerned, Hamas and Fatah don't need to accept the Quartet conditions, only appear to do so. So he is saying to Hamas, let's pretend to accept the conditions, form a Unity Government, and then we'll get the money. But, so far Hamas won't even buy that.
Yesterday three Israelis were injured in Sderot and the day before the electricity supply was interrupted there by a hit. So far the IDF have not found a way to stop the firing of these very mobile short range rockets, but they have gotten better at it. Now they know that most of the lauchings are done with timers, so noone is present at the time, but they go back to retrieve the launchers to use them again, and that's when a lot of the terrorists are caught red-handed and killed. Also, groups of men preparing to leave a location with launchers and rockets in their cars/vans are often hit by missiles, leading to secondary explosions. This weekend in one incursion with tanks and infantry the IDF was engaged by Hamas gunmen and 15 were killed while the IDF suffered no casualties itself. So "mowing the lawn" keeps the enemy off balance and punishes them, but does not stop hostilties. Neither has it helped in getting Shalit back, although the IDF has announced that these punishing incursions will stop once he is released.
The international media almost ignores the continued fighting in Gaza, as if after the war in Lebanon the Middle East has had its moment of fame, its share of media attention for a while. The Palestinians are, of course, angry that no one seems to show them sympathy, but they are still holding Shalit, and the Hamas Government, both PM Haniyeh in Gaza and Khaled Mashaal in Damascus, have announced over and over again that it will not recognize Israel's right to exist. Maybe even the international media are fed up with them.
There are also confliciting statements of whether or not a "Unity Government" is possible in the PA. Hamas seems to want to keep the illusion alive, so that they can hold out hope of international or European funding, even without accepting the three conditions of the Quartet. But, Pres. Abbas and Fatah are now generally pessimistic about the possibility. However, as soon as he moves to dissolve the current Hamas Government or does anything else it could result in an expansion of the current clashes into a civil war. On the other hand, Abbas has said in Arabic (not reported in the West) that as far as he is concerned, Hamas and Fatah don't need to accept the Quartet conditions, only appear to do so. So he is saying to Hamas, let's pretend to accept the conditions, form a Unity Government, and then we'll get the money. But, so far Hamas won't even buy that.
posted by Jack Cohen at 7:17 PM
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