Operation Cast Lead II

Palestine Monitor

Yisrael Beiteinu promotes another invasion

Scrapping Hamas’ offered cease-fire, influential Yisrael Beiteinu politicians are promoting another invasion of Palestine’s worn-torn, besieged land of Gaza.

While President Benajim Netanyahu thanked in Washington, DC for another US$205 million for Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system, Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon called for the forced removal of Hamas.

“Only the collapse of Hamas rule in Gaza will stop the firing,” Ayalon said, according to Jpost. “There is no other solution.”

A peaceful solution, though, was proposed by Hamas: a ceasefire that was held by both Netanyahu and most of Gaza’s guerrillas. But following escalating violence, Israel has reentered Gaza in force, killing twenty Palestinians as a collective punishment.

Ayalon, his party comrade Avigdor Lieberman, and others called the cease-fire a mistake.

“The enemy will now recover, just as it did after Operation Cast Lead, another military operation which drew to a halt before its completion,” wrote Israel Harel on Haaretz. “Hamas will arm itself for another, even more lethal, round of fighting.”

Voted into power in 2006, Hamas was quickly targeted by the Palestinian Authority, Israel and the US as a “terrorist” threat and engaged through bloody inter-Palestinian battles, sanctions, and a horrific siege. The harshest result of this complete rejection of the Gaza Strip’s impoverished people’s democratic choice – however desperately decided – was called Operation Cast Lead.

The Palestine Monitor’s 2009 book Palestine’s Guernica and many other sources have multilaterally defined Israel’s invasion of Gaza a modern atrocity of incredible proportions. six thousand injured and 1,500 dead. It’s blood and rancor have not cautioned the war drums of Israel – but have rather whet the appetites of some leading politicians.

“We need to finish the job of Operation Cast Lead,” said Uzi Landau, National Infrastructure Minister said to Israeli Army Radio. “If we really want to deter Hamas, we must exploit their fear of losing control in the strip. Our targets need to be their leaders."