Still deeply shocked after suffering the deadliest attack in its history with more than 700 fatalities, 2,200 injured and around 130 kidnapped in just a few hours, Israel launched the first large waves of bombings against hundreds of military and civilian targets of the fundamentalist group Hamas. in the Gaza Strip.
More than 400 Palestinians have been killed, according to the Ministry of Health of the Hamas-controlled enclave, in airstrikes and armed clashes since last Saturday when the massive infiltration into southern Israel took place. Dozens of militiamen who arrived with astonishing ease into Israeli territory were detained and killed while trying to return to Gaza or continue attacking towns. On Sunday night, Israel still could not declare all those areas “safe and without the presence of Hamas”.
Although he calls it Operation Iron Swords, the Israeli army does not consider it another offensive but a war. Its stated objective is not to end the Hamas regime in Gaza but “destroy the armed capabilities of the terrorist groups Hamas and Islamic Jihad”. It is a fundamental nuance although it also requires long weeks of air attacks and a large ground incursion. This option is on the table of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, under the broad demand of his people for an unprecedented retaliation to the unprecedented attack but also aware that the invasion of Gaza would endanger Israeli hostages and open new fronts for part of other groups in the region encouraged by the unexpected and resounding defensive failure of their powerful common enemy against Hamas.
The first sign was seen this Sunday when the Lebanese Hezbollah militia fired several projectiles at Israeli positions in the disputed Shebaa Farms in the border triangle with Syria and Lebanon. The response of Sea fish It was also limited in a mutual attempt to avoid a full-scale clash between them. In any case, and learning the lesson from what happened in the south, Israel sent more reinforcement troops to the border with Lebanon.
The decision of the head of Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, to participate in the war, which would have tragic effects for Lebanon as in 2006, depends on the green light from his boss in Tehran who does not hide his euphoria over what happened this weekend. Iranian President Ibrahim Raisi spoke by phone with the leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyah, and Islamic Jihad, Ziad Nahale, to strengthen the anti-Israeli alliance in one of its most critical moments. According to the Tasnim News agency, Raisi supported the “right of defense of the Palestinian nation” and accused: “The Zionist regime and its followers are responsible for the instability in the region.”