Enough is enough!
"We do not for one moment accept the existence of such a way of life here in which we must live entrenched in shelters in order to defend ourselves from our enemies." PM Ehud Olmert in Sderot 9/12/08
"Hamas needs to understand that our aspiration to live in peace doesn't mean that Israel is going to take this kind of situation any longer. Enough is enough!" FM Tzipi Livni, Cairo 25/12/08
"Don't let Hamas, which is acting against the values of Islam, put you in danger. Stop them. Stop your enemies and ours....I will not hesitate to use Israel's might to strike Hamas and [Islamic] Jihad. How? I will not go into details." PM Ehud Olmert El Arabiya TV interview 25/12/08
During the so-called ceasefire (tardiyah) between July and Dec 18, 2008, Palestinians fired 325 rockets and mortars from Gaza into Southern Israel. After the ceasefire the rate of firings increased, with ca. 130 being fired in the last two days (Thurs, Fri). It was clear from their actions and words that the Hamas leadership in Gaza did not expect the Israeli Government to actually act on its warnings. Hamas had angered Pres. Mubarak of Egypt, by not attending a meeting he had arranged with the PA Fatah leadership from the West Bank, and also by ignoring his appeals to continue the ceasefire with Israel. As a consequence his meeting a few days ago with FM Tzipi Livni in Cairo was a signal to Israel and Hamas that he would not oppose a "limited" Israeli response to the continued attacks from Hamas in Gaza.
While it is true that few Israelis were killed in the rocket/mortar attacks from Gaza, nevertheless southern Israel was terrorized by this bombardment, and major Israeli cities, Ashkelon and Ashdod, were coming into the range of rocket attacks. Ironically yesterday two Palestinian girls were killed in Gaza when a rocket went astray and hit a nearby house, showing how potentially devastating such a rocket barrage can be.
The major justification given by Hamas for continuing the attacks on Israel was the "blockade" of Gaza by Israel and the closing of its borders to humanitarian aid, food and energy supplies. However, this is not true, since Israel has continued to supply these essentials into Gaza to avoid such a humanitarian catastrophe, as claimed by the UN. In fact, although life in Gaza has certainly not been pleasant, with 75% of its electrical needs being supplied by the Israeli and Egyptain grids, and with adequate supplies being sent in by Israel and smuggled (with Egyptian connivance) thru the tunnels between Egypt and Gaza, there is no actual shortage of food in Gaza. In fact, yesterday, on the orders of Defense Minister Ehud Barak, 120 truck loads of food and supplies were allowed to enter Gaza from Israel. So that while 70 rockets went from Gaza to Israel, 120 trucks of food went from Israel to Gaza. This is a ridiculous situation, and hence the final warnings from PM Olmert and FM Livni in the past two days have now been carried out.
Today (shabbat) planes of the IAF hit ca. 30 sites in the Gaza strip consisting mostly of police stations and Hamas security forces centers in many towns. It is estimated that there are ca. 150 dead and 450 injured. This is a grim warning to Hamas to stop the rockets launched on southern Israel. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that this will stop the rocket barrage, as found in the second Lebanon War. In fact, further rocket attacks into Israel today are reported to have killed one Israeli in Netivot. Although Pres. Peres said that the IDF will not enter Gaza, in the final analysis this will be the only way to stop the bombardment.
"Hamas needs to understand that our aspiration to live in peace doesn't mean that Israel is going to take this kind of situation any longer. Enough is enough!" FM Tzipi Livni, Cairo 25/12/08
"Don't let Hamas, which is acting against the values of Islam, put you in danger. Stop them. Stop your enemies and ours....I will not hesitate to use Israel's might to strike Hamas and [Islamic] Jihad. How? I will not go into details." PM Ehud Olmert El Arabiya TV interview 25/12/08
During the so-called ceasefire (tardiyah) between July and Dec 18, 2008, Palestinians fired 325 rockets and mortars from Gaza into Southern Israel. After the ceasefire the rate of firings increased, with ca. 130 being fired in the last two days (Thurs, Fri). It was clear from their actions and words that the Hamas leadership in Gaza did not expect the Israeli Government to actually act on its warnings. Hamas had angered Pres. Mubarak of Egypt, by not attending a meeting he had arranged with the PA Fatah leadership from the West Bank, and also by ignoring his appeals to continue the ceasefire with Israel. As a consequence his meeting a few days ago with FM Tzipi Livni in Cairo was a signal to Israel and Hamas that he would not oppose a "limited" Israeli response to the continued attacks from Hamas in Gaza.
While it is true that few Israelis were killed in the rocket/mortar attacks from Gaza, nevertheless southern Israel was terrorized by this bombardment, and major Israeli cities, Ashkelon and Ashdod, were coming into the range of rocket attacks. Ironically yesterday two Palestinian girls were killed in Gaza when a rocket went astray and hit a nearby house, showing how potentially devastating such a rocket barrage can be.
The major justification given by Hamas for continuing the attacks on Israel was the "blockade" of Gaza by Israel and the closing of its borders to humanitarian aid, food and energy supplies. However, this is not true, since Israel has continued to supply these essentials into Gaza to avoid such a humanitarian catastrophe, as claimed by the UN. In fact, although life in Gaza has certainly not been pleasant, with 75% of its electrical needs being supplied by the Israeli and Egyptain grids, and with adequate supplies being sent in by Israel and smuggled (with Egyptian connivance) thru the tunnels between Egypt and Gaza, there is no actual shortage of food in Gaza. In fact, yesterday, on the orders of Defense Minister Ehud Barak, 120 truck loads of food and supplies were allowed to enter Gaza from Israel. So that while 70 rockets went from Gaza to Israel, 120 trucks of food went from Israel to Gaza. This is a ridiculous situation, and hence the final warnings from PM Olmert and FM Livni in the past two days have now been carried out.
Today (shabbat) planes of the IAF hit ca. 30 sites in the Gaza strip consisting mostly of police stations and Hamas security forces centers in many towns. It is estimated that there are ca. 150 dead and 450 injured. This is a grim warning to Hamas to stop the rockets launched on southern Israel. Unfortunately, it is unlikely that this will stop the rocket barrage, as found in the second Lebanon War. In fact, further rocket attacks into Israel today are reported to have killed one Israeli in Netivot. Although Pres. Peres said that the IDF will not enter Gaza, in the final analysis this will be the only way to stop the bombardment.
posted by Jack Cohen at 10:02 PM
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