Israeli soldiers advance near the border with central Gaza during a ground operation by the Israeli army. More than 20,000 Israel Defence Forces troops have entered the Gaza Strip as part of the long-anticipated ground offensive to rout Hamas militants inside the tiny Palestinian territory. The second stage of Operation Cast Lead to end rocket attacks by Gaza militants on southern Israeli cities began under cover of darkness about 8pm Israeli time (5am on Sunday AEST). Troops entered Gaza at the northern end of the Gaza Strip, and included members of the infantry, tank units, engineering forces, The Israeli Air Force and Navy provided support from the air and sea. IDF spokeswoman Major Avital Leibovitch said the objective was "to destroy the Hamas terror infrastructure in the area of operations". "We are going to take some of the launch areas used by Hamas," she said. IDF spokesman Captain Benjamin Rutland told theHerald that, as of 8.30am Australian time, there had been Israeli casualties. Captain Rutland said he was unable to comment on the number of casualties suffered by Hamas militants. "Hamas has built a significant infrastructure inside Gaza involving tunnels and underground weapons silos similar to that built by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon," Captain Rutland said. "Not all of these facilities can be destroyed from the air and that is the reason that we are implementing a ground operation." He said IDF troops were focused on rocket launching zones and had no intention of reoccupying Gaza. Israel's Channel 2 television network said that initial reports from both Israel and Gaza indicated that IDF troops had already killed dozens of Hamas gunmen since the ground operation began. A spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert confirmed that the call-up of thousands of extra troops had already begun. Earlier, the IDF released a statement confirming the start of the operation, which it said was aimed at bringing "about an improved and more stable security situation for residents of southern Israel over the long term". "Large numbers of forces are taking part in this stage of the operation including infantry, tanks, engineering forces, artillery and In a televised address carried live on Israeli networks, Defence Minister Ehud Barak said he expected the ground operation to last for several days, and that it signalled difficult days ahead for Israeli residents of the south of Israel.smh.com au
The Sydney Morning Herald.
20,000 Israel Defence Forces
Photo: Reuters
artillery and intelligence.
intelligence with the support of the Israel Air Force, Israel Navy, Israel Security Agency and other security agencies," the statement said.
Sunday, 4 January 2009
Posts
