IDF worried Hamas may build anti-tank division

[bemildred]

Hamas could feasibly establish a military division of some 10,000 soldiers with an operational force similar to Hezbollah's if it continues to strengthen at its current pace, Israel Defense Forces GOC Southern Command Yoav Glant said Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will convene his political-security cabinet on Wednesday to discuss the IDF's policy in the Gaza Strip and work out responses to ongoing incidents of Palestinian Qassam fire and arms smuggling.

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Glant told the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that Hamas could bolster its forces to include anti-tank divisions and commandos, and could gain access to advanced weapons systems as well as night-vision apparatus.

The IDF is preparing to weaken Hamas' efforts, but the plan must first be approved at the political level, Glant said. Hamas is currently in its first phase of force building and does not yet have these advanced capabilities or a hierarchical system of divisions and brigades, he said.

Haaretz

[endarkenment]

1. Perhaps the IDF should consider stopping the tank attacks.

Or did they expect that the people of gaza would just put up with being rolled over by armoured columns on a regular basis without ever building an effective defense?

[pelsar]

2. or perhaps...

the palestenians should stop the kassam attacks...which is where it all started...rebuild the greenhouses, restore the 4,000+ jobs they destroyed themselves...stop attacking karmi, the import export terminal...stop attacking rafah and the egyptians, they might want to stop attacking the foreigners, perhaps rebuild the UNs resturant on the beach they destroyed.....and maybe they have a chance to improve their life to the level it was before intifada I?

do the palestenains and their friends really believe that they can attack israeli population centers AFTER israel left gaza and israel would let them terrorize israeli civilians without doing something?.....dumb dumb and dumber....

[bemildred]

3. Peretz balks at IDF plans to expand Gaza operation

Defense Minister Amir Peretz has expressed reservations regarding the hawkish stance taken by the army's leadership on operations in the Gaza Strip, and is concerned that any escalation will result in a total loss of control over the situation there.

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On several recent occasions, Peretz publicly expressed his reservations regarding a possible escalation in the Gaza Strip. The defense minister is of the opinion that even though the arming of Hamas should not be ignored, the IDF should focus on pinpoint operations, having a clear operational purpose. Peretz has warned against extended operations, which may deteriorate into Israel reoccupying parts of the Gaza Strip.

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Speaking Tuesday before the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Major General Gallant said that unless the arming of Hamas is stopped, it will be in a position to fulfill its plans of creating a full division of commandos in the Gaza Strip, specialized in the use of anti-tank missiles - similar to the Hezbollah units that fought against the IDF in southern Lebanon this summer.

The same sources said Peretz was furious when he found out that the IDF razed a large number of Palestinian-owned buildings last week in the Erez industrial area in the northern Gaza Strip, during an operation in search of tunnels.

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/782444.html