Israel expected to escalate crackdown on Hamas

Ramallah Motivated to drive a wedge into the Palestinian unity government, Israel is expected to continue to ferment anti-Hamas feeling in Israel in its response to the killing of three teenage colonists who went missing 18 days ago.

According to a key commentator, Israel is expected to encourage Israeli colonists to ‘avenge’ the murder of the teenagers. Israel on Tuesday vowed to hunt down the Hamas militants who kidnapped and killed three teenagers, but was likely to carefully weigh its response to avoid triggering a regional flareup. Israel said it would not rest until it finds those behind their kidnap and murder. But despite extensive Israeli air strikes on Gaza overnight, no one was killed, with Israel’s military establishment and cabinet heavyweights backing a more moderate response over isolated calls for a major operation in the strip. But the three-hour meeting ended inconclusively, with ministers sharply at odds over the right course of action, army radio’s diplomatic correspondent reported. An Israeli official familiar with the content of the meeting confirmed reports that Yaalon suggested a “measured” response which would not lead to an escalation with Gaza, and Netanyahu was inclined to accept his position. The security cabinet did not vote on Yaalon’s proposal and was expected to reconvene on Tuesday evening. Hamas has warned that Israel would “open the gates of hell” if it carried out any reprisal operations against the Islamist movement, whose power base is in Gaza. Israeli warplanes during the night pounded Gaza, hitting 34 targets across the enclave, the military said. Palestinian medics told AFP four people were wounded in the southern city of Khan Yunis, describing their condition as moderate to serious. Hani Habib, a political commentator told Gulf News that Israel will detain many more Hamas members in the West Bank but has no plans to deport them Gaza because it has become a centre to build the resistance against Israel. “Israel would have found it very difficult if the colonists were found alive because they would have to strike a deal to secure their release,” he said.

Abdul Sattar Qassem, a political analyst and commentator said Israel has no strategic plan on how to combat Hamas, although the sweeping arrests made by the occupation has severely crippled Hamas’ effectiveness in the West Bank.

“Although Israel is escalating the situation, it does not want an all out war on Gaza, its not in Israel’s interests at all,” he said. Without proof that Hamas was responsible for the deaths, Israel is put in a precarious place as the burden of proof lies with the state. Most observers and commentators do not believe that Hamas were responsible for the kidnappings. Eyad, a Palestinian who spoke to Gulf News, believes the whole kidnappings were an orchestrated plot directed by Israel’s security service. “Israel has taken advantage of the situation and milked it politically,” he said. “Israel is good at creating scenes to justify their actions, but we Palestinians have becomed accustomed to their games.” On Tuesday, the United Nations human rights office urged both Israelis and Palestinians to exercise “maximum restraint” after the bodies of the boys were found.

With inputs from AFP