When I woke up this morning, I decided to see how the fighting in the Gaza Strip was going. The Israelis seem to be proceeding methodically.
Israeli ground troops and tanks cut swaths through the Gaza Strip early Sunday, bisecting the coastal territory and surrounding its biggest city as the new phase of a devastating offensive against Hamas gained momentum.
Thousands of soldiers in three brigade-size formations pushed into Gaza after nightfall Saturday, beginning a long-awaited ground offensive after a week of intense aerial bombardment. Black smoke billowed over Gaza City at first light and bursts of machine gun fire rang out. (from here)
Part of this effort also involves the political cover the United States is providing Israel in the United Nations.
The United States late Saturday blocked approval of a U.N. Security Council statement calling for an immediate cease-fire between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers, diplomats said. (from here)
As usual, there is also information warfare. For example, the Israelis made calm pronouncements regretting the necessity of the invasion.
Israel’s ground assault followed a weeklong flurry of airstrikes. Israel has said the attacks are in response to recent rocket attacks from Hamas militants in Gaza.
“We haven’t articulated regime change as the goal of this operation. Our goal is to protect our people,” Israeli government spokesman Mark Regev said.
Regev said Gaza’s civilian population was not Israel’s enemy.
“In many ways, they are victims like us. Both the civilian population of southern Israel and the civilian population of the Gaza Strip have been victims of this terrible, extremist Hamas regime,” Regev said. (from here)
Hamas, on the other hand, talked about death and destruction.
Hamas threatened to turn Gaza into a “graveyard” for Israeli forces.
“You entered like rats,” Hamas spokesman Ismail Radwan told Israeli soldiers in a statement on Hamas’ Al Aqsa TV. “Gaza will be a graveyard for you, God willing.” (from here)
Because the same article mentions the bomb-sniffing dogs the Israeling troops are using to avoid booby traps, Hamas’ rat analogy left me with a different perspective than their propagandists intended.
Rat Terrier
The breed name comes from the occupation of its earliest ancestors; brought to the US by working class British migrants, these quick, tough little dogs gained their fame in rat pit gambling. However they were, for the most part, bred for speed. Their speed is used for controlling vermin and hunting squirrels, hare, and other small game. (from here)
Hamas and its gunman hide in an urban environment amongst a civilian population and they dare to call the Israeli Defense Forces rats? What stupid hypocrites!
