Israel prepares for ground assault in Gaza - The Times of Indiahttp://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Israel-prepares-for-ground-assault-in-Gaza/articleshow/17250310.cms …
Times of India 
8:39 PM - 16 Nov 12 · Details
JERUSALEM: After a morning of heavy rocket fire from Gaza into Israel, the Israeli military seemed to be edging closer to a ground invasion of Gaza on Friday, saying forces were "ready to enter should it be decided that a ground operation is necessary."
In a statement, the Israeli military said paratrooper and infantry brigades had completed final preparations for a potential ground operation, which would be the first since the winter of 2008-09, when Israel drew broad international reproach for an invasion that claimed 1,400 Palestinian lives for the loss of 13 Israelis.
The statement came after scores of rockets were fired into Israel, striking major cities of the south, causing widespread panic and damage and shattering plans for a temporary ceasefire during aremarkable visit to Gaza by the Egyptian prime minister that showed the shifting dynamics of Middle East politics since the turmoil of the Arab Spring uprisings.
Word of the potential invasion emerged shortly before a rocket from Gaza struck near Tel Aviv.Hamas militants also fired rockets for the first time at Jerusalem. An Israeli police spokesman, Micky Rosenfeld, said the rocket probably landed in the sea, and that it was one of 120 rockets fired into Israel by dusk on Friday.
Israeli officials say that the only rockets in Gaza with a range that can reach Tel Aviv are Iranian-made Fajr-5 projectiles that Israel has been trying to take out with hundreds of airstrikes over the last two days. That the rockets were still being fired seemed to weigh heavily in Israelimilitary calculations about a ground invasion.
After a meeting with President Shimon Peres, PM Benjamin Netanyahu said that the Israeli armywas "continuing to hit Hamas hard and is ready to expand the operation into Gaza," according to a statement from his office.
Netanyahu said that the aim was "to take out the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza while doing everything possible not to harm civilians".
The Israeli military said Colonel Amir Baram, commander of the Israel defence forces' paratroopers brigade, had addressed his forces during a preparatory briefing in the field, saying, "We are already 48 hours into an operation that we knew would have to happen. We have spoken about it during training, exercises and conferences. There is no doubt that we have to operate. This is why we enlisted, and trained."
Witnesses on the Gaza-Israel border said Israeli tanks had massed in several places.
In Washington, Obama administration officials said they had asked friendly Arab countries with ties to Hamas to use their influence to seek a way to defuse the hostilities.
At the same time, however, a state department spokesman, Mark C Toner, reiterated the American position that Israel had a right to defend itself from the rocket fire and that the "onus was on Hamas" to stop it. nyt news service
In a statement, the Israeli military said paratrooper and infantry brigades had completed final preparations for a potential ground operation, which would be the first since the winter of 2008-09, when Israel drew broad international reproach for an invasion that claimed 1,400 Palestinian lives for the loss of 13 Israelis.
The statement came after scores of rockets were fired into Israel, striking major cities of the south, causing widespread panic and damage and shattering plans for a temporary ceasefire during aremarkable visit to Gaza by the Egyptian prime minister that showed the shifting dynamics of Middle East politics since the turmoil of the Arab Spring uprisings.
Word of the potential invasion emerged shortly before a rocket from Gaza struck near Tel Aviv.Hamas militants also fired rockets for the first time at Jerusalem. An Israeli police spokesman, Micky Rosenfeld, said the rocket probably landed in the sea, and that it was one of 120 rockets fired into Israel by dusk on Friday.
Israeli officials say that the only rockets in Gaza with a range that can reach Tel Aviv are Iranian-made Fajr-5 projectiles that Israel has been trying to take out with hundreds of airstrikes over the last two days. That the rockets were still being fired seemed to weigh heavily in Israelimilitary calculations about a ground invasion.
After a meeting with President Shimon Peres, PM Benjamin Netanyahu said that the Israeli armywas "continuing to hit Hamas hard and is ready to expand the operation into Gaza," according to a statement from his office.
Netanyahu said that the aim was "to take out the terrorist infrastructure in Gaza while doing everything possible not to harm civilians".
The Israeli military said Colonel Amir Baram, commander of the Israel defence forces' paratroopers brigade, had addressed his forces during a preparatory briefing in the field, saying, "We are already 48 hours into an operation that we knew would have to happen. We have spoken about it during training, exercises and conferences. There is no doubt that we have to operate. This is why we enlisted, and trained."
Witnesses on the Gaza-Israel border said Israeli tanks had massed in several places.
In Washington, Obama administration officials said they had asked friendly Arab countries with ties to Hamas to use their influence to seek a way to defuse the hostilities.
At the same time, however, a state department spokesman, Mark C Toner, reiterated the American position that Israel had a right to defend itself from the rocket fire and that the "onus was on Hamas" to stop it. nyt news service
