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Last update - 15:00 11/01/2009
ANALYSIS / Price of stubbornness over Gaza exit is dead soldiers
By Amos Harel and Avi Issacharoff, Haaretz Correspondents
Tags: hamas, israel news, israel 

Those who want to treat the delay in creating a diplomatic exit strategy for the war in Gaza as if it were a divine decree must take into account that at the end of this determination are casualties. The repeated delays in moving ahead with Operation Cast Lead, first before the ground operation and now the slow way Israel is seeking 'exit points' have a price. We are now beginning to pay it.

Since the beginning of Cast Lead, most of the cabinet and the army have praised themselves for their thorough application of the Winograd recommendations from the Second Lebanon War. But the Winograd Committee's criticism of the poor coordination between military action and diplomatic achievements seems relevant in this round as well. Most of the military at the operational level is pushing for continuing the operation deep within Hamas territory. That is exactly what is expected of them.



In contrast, Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi was very cautious in presenting the risks and opportunities in Friday afternoon's cabinet meeting. Ashkenazi is likely to be satisfied with a quick end to the ground operation, in the coming days. However with the defense minister and the foreign minister both beginning their days trying to figure out how to thwart the success of the other, and the (outgoing) prime minister toying with the idea of smashing Hamas, it's little wonder that a diplomatic solution is still far off.

The IDF has inserted a crushing war machine into the Gaza Strip to confront thousands of terrorists and guerilla fighters who have been preparing for months for a possible invasion. The forces are advancing through built-up, fortified and booby-trapped territory, and in so doing are incurring great risk to themselves.

Ashkenazi had said in earlier discussions that use of major fire power would be inevitable even in the most densly populated areas. The Israeli solution was thus to be very aggressive to protect the lives of the soldiers as much as possible.

These are 'Georgia rules,' which are not so far from the methods Russia used in its conflict last summer. The result is the killing of dozens of non-combatant Palestinians. The Gaza medical teams might not have reached all of them yet.

When an Israeli force gets into an entanglement, as in Sajaiyeh last night, massive fire into built-up areas is initiated to cover the extraction. In other cases, a chain of explosions is initiated from a distance to set off Hamas booby-traps. It is a method that leaves a swath of destruction taking in entire streets, and does not distinguish military targets from the homes of civilians.

From Hamas' perspective, the Sajaiyeh incident that left 3 IDF troops dead Monday is a significant first achievement. For the first time, Israeli TV broadcasts raised the question of whether it was worthwhile for the operation to continue.

When the IDF first entered the Strip on the ground on Saturday night, Hamas avoided engaging it directly. Only when the troops began to make preparations to stay, including the takeover of Palestinian homes, did the Palestinian group begin to take on the invaders at closer range.

With the Palestinians already having suffered 550 dead and 2,700 injured, the Sajaiyeh incident is the first revenge by the people of Gaza. Until that incident last night, it seemed as if Hamas' distress was pushing it toward a diplomatic solution. Hamas turned to Egypt as an intermediary, despite the hostility between Cairo and Hamas.

However, the Egyptian cease-fire proposal does not allow Hamas to present any significant achievements at the end of the fighting. Egypt wants Hamas to stop fighting with no preconditions for an unlimited period, and to enter negotiations with no timetable.

Egypt also apparently intends to act more seriously to stop the smuggling into Gaza from its territory. Cairo sees the Israeli operation as the chance to settle accounts with Hamas for not renewing the dialogue with Fatah.

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      1.   Like Duh Dude 06:58  |  Mark Lincoln 06/01/09
      2.   Neither Israel nor Egypt can afford having an undefitted Hamas on 06:58  |  Jehudah Ben-Israel 06/01/09
      3.   Hold nothing back - The Gazans are brainwashed nutcases 07:01  |  Aryeah245 06/01/09
      4.   Attitude 07:05  |  David 06/01/09
      5.   Hamas will not roll over as easily as expected 07:06  |  Natallie Durson 06/01/09
      6.   the water at haaretz 07:10  |  tooclose2detroit 06/01/09
      7.   Some IDF Casualties Are To Be Expected (part 2) 07:14  |  Jeff Northridge 06/01/09
      8.   OLMERT HAS AN EXIT STRATEGY FOR HIMSELF 07:23  |  indrajaya 06/01/09
      9.   Amos- wow, you have the perception of a 5 year old 07:25  |  sharon 06/01/09
      10.   Amos- wow, you have the perception of a 5 year old 07:25  |  sharon 06/01/09
      11.   who pays to this newspaper? 07:28  |  a Jew 06/01/09
      12.   Suppression of missile fire is a primary goal 07:37  |  DAVID KAPLAN 06/01/09
      13.   Nasty defeatist article that could lower army morale! 07:42  |  martin knopfman 06/01/09
      14.   Have you lost your minds at Haaretz? 07:48  |  Sylvia 06/01/09
      15.   I have not heard of one Gazan who blames Hamas 07:53  |  Am Yisrael chai 06/01/09
      16.   TOTAL VICTORY MORE IMPORTANT THAN ENEMY CIVILIANS 07:57  |  Steve 06/01/09
      17.   Hamas`s strategy unclear 07:57  |  Brian 06/01/09
      18.   Disrespect For The Fallen 08:00  |  Bob Shaw 06/01/09
      19.   it was known that there would be dead soldiers 08:02  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 06/01/09
      20.   To # 1 08:04  |  Robbie 06/01/09
      21.   full of non-sequiturs 08:12  |  JS 06/01/09
      22.   No Hamas wont roll over 08:12  |  Alice 06/01/09
      23.   AMOS HAREL & Haaretz = The HAMAS CHEERLEADERS 08:14  |  amir 06/01/09
      24.   In war there is no such thing as innocent civilians 08:14  |  Yaakov hillel 06/01/09
      25.   Senseless war 08:24  |  Elizabeth Mcwartz 06/01/09
      26.   the Sajaiyeh incident thru Harel`s prism 08:58  |  Joseph.E 06/01/09
      27.   Booby traps are set off in the civilian?s neighborhoods, 09:10  |  e.m Jordan is Palse 06/01/09
      28.   Steve and casualty count 09:24  |  Truth 06/01/09
      29.   Remember Nahr el Bared in Lebanon 09:25  |  Tom 06/01/09
      30.   yaakov hillel apply the dictum to Israel 09:26  |  Truth 06/01/09
      31.   Despicable Approach 09:27  |  Motti,Marlene Zaslow 06/01/09
      32.   Totally agree with you #6 09:52  |  Hashem 06/01/09
      33.   Nu Amos, Bei-emet!! 09:53  |  TW 06/01/09
      34.   #6 12:18  |  A.M. 06/01/09
      35.   It`s a war and some soldiers sadly will die 12:33  |  George 06/01/09
      36.   Even if HAMAS is defeated militarily 12:40  |  Chris Linthwaite 06/01/09
      37.   Continue until the end 13:16  |  Y 06/01/09
      38.   Why rampant aggression doesn`t command respect 13:22  |  Lexo 06/01/09
      39.   occupy the gaza/egypt border 13:22  |  andrew 06/01/09
      40.   Steve - what objectives? 13:23  |  Lexo 06/01/09
      41.   Wake up my Friend 14:00  |  DAn 06/01/09
      42.   Hamas couldn`t have a better friend then Egypt. 14:16  |  Susanna/Shoshana 06/01/09
      43.   Our soldiers are heroes 14:22  |  A mother 06/01/09
      44.   Israel had an objective:when the rockets stop,Israel will leave G 14:24  |  Susanna/Shoshana 06/01/09
      45.   Why doesn`t Abbas invite those in Gaza who wish to 14:28  |  Susanna/Shoshana 06/01/09
      46.   Masters of War 14:56  |  John 06/01/09
      47.   The mother from the north 15:50  |  Ibrahim 06/01/09
      48.   Susanna/Shoshana on Abbas 15:56  |  Yaakov Sullivan 06/01/09
      49.   To #45 16:04  |  Patrice Hupard 06/01/09
      50.   O.K. yaakov,old wise one,tell us all the"other means" that could 17:27  |  terrornator 06/01/09
      51.   the rockets only have to stop firing into Israel and the IDF will 17:29  |  Susanna/Shoshana 06/01/09
      52.   Gilad Shalit is probably part of Israel`s exit strategy,as well 19:15  |  Susanna/Shoshana 06/01/09
      53.   ibraham 19:30  |  bronxite10 06/01/09
      54.   Soldiers are perishing doing their duty defending the 19:36  |  Daniel 06/01/09
      55.   Mother don`t try to reverse history Israel take better care 19:47  |  Daniel 06/01/09
      56.   #51 Susanna you don`t get it 19:51  |  Chris Linthwaite 06/01/09
      57.   weakened Hammas 20:31  |  arik 06/01/09
      58.   Military supplies to Hamas forces in Gaza 20:41  |  Marten King 06/01/09
      59.   Liberal hacks 20:44  |  David 06/01/09
      60.   Talkback 05:49  |  Abraham 07/01/09
      61.   disengagement- price of dead soldiers 05:51  |  Prof. Michael Stern 07/01/09
      62.   A new man in town - no friend of the Zionists 06:02  |  Randle Bate 07/01/09
      63.   A new man in town - no friend of the Zionists 06:04  |  Randle Bate 07/01/09
      64.   Same promises and same leftist acceptance 06:27  |  LA 07/01/09
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    Israel fears wave of war crimes lawsuits over Gaza offensive
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    Akiva Eldar: Obama mustn't let Israel kill and bleed all the way to an apartheid state
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