Israel Under Attack And Fighting Back

Late last night The Jerusalem Post reported that Tel Aviv and Jerusalem were under rocket attack from Gaza. Jerusalem has opened its public bomb shelters. The Iron Dome has been effective in stopping many of the rockets, but the attacks on Tel Aviv and Jerusalem represent an increase in the Gazan rockets’ range.

The article reports:

Iron Dome intercepted 23 rockets, shooting down rockets over Ashdod, Ashkelon and Gaza border communities.

The army began calling up the 40,000 reserve soldiers the cabinet approved for Operation Protective Edge, launched the previous night to stop the rocket fire from Gaza. IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz asked for the 40,000 soldiers in order to replace conscripted forces in the West Bank, thereby enabling their deployment to the Gaza border.

Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon brought the request to the cabinet, and the ministers approved it. By Tuesday afternoon, the IDF had begun issuing reserve notices.

Following high-level security deliberations on Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu decided to expand the military operation in the Gaza Strip, including beginning preparations for a ground offensive. No time limit was put on the operation, but senior political officials said it could be “for a long time.”

The objective, according to the officials, is to return quiet to the South, but the equation that “quiet would be met with quiet” was no longer the operative principle.

Hamas became part of the Palestinian government recently. What is happening now is one result of that partnership. The truly disturbing fact in what is currently happening in Israel is that Hamas has obtained better rockets with a longer range. Peace in the Middle East will not be possible until the rockets stop flying. It is a credit to Israel that Gaza has not been totally destroyed–Israel’s first response has been to use the Iron Dome to protect itself rather than to obliterate the country launching the rockets. I don’t know how much longer we can expect Israel to be patient–if America were under rocket attack from another country, I don’t think that country would last long.