TEL AVIV — Israel's military has been pressing for an invasion of
the Gaza Strip in an effort to reduce missile strikes on the Jewish state.
Officials said Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz and Chief of Staff Lt. Gen.
Dan Halutz have been reviewing options for a ground attack on and the
recapture of the northern Gaza Strip. They said the military recommended the
creation of a buffer zone that would prevent Palestinian missiles from
striking strategic facilities near the Israeli city of Ashkelon.
"If God forbid a rocket falls on an oil terminal in one facility or
another that would ignite, this would lead to a much more complicated story
and perhaps a harsher [Israeli] response," [Res.] Maj. Gen. Yom Tov Samia,
former chief of the military's Southern Command, said.
Officials said military planners have conducted simulations of a rapid
takeover of northern Gaza. They said a combined task force of elite units --
backed by attack helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, main battle tanks
and surface naval vessels -- could control an area of some 40 square
kilometers within a day.
"If you ask me, this is what will take place in the near future," [Res.]
Col. Gidi Netzer, a military consultant, said. "The only option against
missiles and rockets is to create a buffer zone controlled entirely by the
Israel Defense Forces."
On Thursday and Friday, Palestinian gunners fired at least 10
Kassam-class, short-range missiles toward the Ashkelon industrial zone,
which contains such vital facilities as a water desalination plant, power
generator and oil terminal. So far, the state-owned Mekorot Water Co.
removed a large amount of chlorine, a highly lethal chemical, from its water
treatment plant near Ashkelon, officials said.
Officials said Palestinian insurgency groups, in cooperation with the
Palestinian Authority, have sought to strike strategic facilities in an
effort to deter Israeli attacks. They said Israeli artillery, naval and air
strikes on suspected launch sites have failed to halt Palestinian missile
attacks from the northern Gaza Strip.
On Thursday, the military announced its latest operation against
Palestinian gunners, termed "Southern Arrow." Officials said the military
would also deploy an additional artillery battery along the Israel-Gaza
border.
Over the last week, however, Palestinians insurgency groups,
particularly the Iranian-sponsored Islamic Jihad, have increased their
missile strikes. Officials said the military and Defense Ministry have
determined that the attacks have been financed by Iran and contributors from
Gulf Cooperation Council states.
Officials said Palestinian insurgency groups would soon introduce
extended-range Kassam missiles for attacks on Ashkelon. They said the groups
have also obtained a limited number of 122 mm Grad rockets from neighboring
Egypt. They said Hizbullah has also sent weapons experts to help launch a
Katyusha production line.
"To prevent this, we must apply more intensive pressure on the
Egyptians," Yuval Steinitz, outgoing chairman of the Knesset Foreign Affairs
and Defense Committee, said. "But it could also mean, if no other option is
left, a ground-based Israeli operation to crush the [Palestinian] armament
industries while they are still small."
