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Ehud Barak speaking on the phone from his new office at the Labor Party headquarters last week. (Nir Kafri)
Last update - 10:49 17/06/2007
Report: Barak planning military operation in Gaza within weeks
By Haaretz Service

Newly elected Labor Party Chairman Ehud Barak, who is set to take over as defense minister on Monday, is planning to launch a military operation aimed at combating Hamas in Gaza, Britain's Sunday Times reported.

The British publication quotes an Israeli source as saying that the operation will include 20,000 troops and will be aimed at destroying Hamas' military capabilities in a short period of time.

According to the source, the Israel Defense Forces will launch the operation if Hamas continues to fire Qassam rockets into Israel, or if terror attacks against Israel are renewed.

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According to the Times, Barak has already asked the IDF to draw up detailed plans for the deployment of troops inside the Gaza Strip.

A close aide to Barak told the Times that Israel would not allow a "Hamastan," to rise within its borders, and that an attack on Gaza seems inevitable.

"The question is not if, but when," he said.

Due to the escalating violence in the Gaza Strip in the past week, during which the militant Hamas seized control over the Gaza Strip in bloody battles with rival party Fatah, Barak was granted the defense ministry portfolio by telephone in a hastened emergency appointment.

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Trio of trysts
On Michael Handelzalts' three cultural and, for the most part, unrequited loves.
Artistic immortalization
Margolies' works may revolve around the morgue, but their value is above sensationalist.
  1.   Barak Seems To Be On The Right Path 08:23  |  Shepherd 17/06/07
  2.   Barak will hopefully stop the rockets 08:32  |  Cedar Rot 17/06/07
  3.   Warning and preparing the enemy 08:44  |  Shalom Freedman 17/06/07
  4.   Go for it Israel. 08:57  |  J. Johnson 17/06/07
  5.   Bark 09:03  |  Mark Black 17/06/07
  6.   BARAK HAS AN INTERESTING SMILE 09:06  |  Meir Weinstein 17/06/07
  7.   Mixed news ... 09:09  |  Carlo 17/06/07
  8.   Thank God, Peretz is gone from the Defense Ministry! 09:18  |  Whew! 17/06/07
  9.   I youre going to do it do it now 09:20  |  Gregory 17/06/07
  10.   Shut up and let our soldiers do the job allready! 09:28  |  Ariya Gothelf 17/06/07
  11.   Go boys go! Beat the crap out of Hamas. 09:50  |  Samuel Prime 17/06/07
  12.   Quassam - "honeymoon" for Israel ??? 10:02  |  Swiss (Dino) 17/06/07
  13.   Sacrificing Israeli lives not for Sderot but for Abbas,how typica 10:07  |  Absolute Sweden 17/06/07
  14.   Invade Gaza and we send you 10:07  |  Samir Salameh 17/06/07
  15.   Israel expects a cakewalk - it won`t be 10:10  |  Clickfool 17/06/07
  16.   Barak is to weak for this 10:19  |  Ken Jurist 17/06/07
  17.   Barak betrayed the SLA in 2000 10:21  |  David Stoler 17/06/07
  18.   "Times Propaganda" Clickfool #7 10:24  |  Yehuda 17/06/07
  19.   Never should have left 10:24  |  Dr David I. Gross 17/06/07
  20.   speak after acting, what is this strategy??? 10:25  |  michel 17/06/07
  21.   Clickfool`s Glee 10:26  |  Nekama Motik 17/06/07
  22.   IF AND WHEN YOU DO IT 10:42  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 17/06/07
  23.   To Dino 10:46  |  Albert 17/06/07
  24.   For Yehuda # 11 10:46  |  Clickfool 17/06/07
  25.   Waiting for Marilyn`s humor 10:48  |  Yehuda 17/06/07
  26.   For Nekama Motik # 14 10:49  |  Clickfool 17/06/07
  27.   AS THE HAMAS WISHES 10:50  |  indrajaya 17/06/07
  28.   This is going to be bloody 10:52  |  S 17/06/07
  29.   To: cArLo - Israel did NOT withdraw from Lebanon but kicked out 10:59  |  Imad 17/06/07
  30.   God speed 11:07  |  Yasir 17/06/07
  31.   Barak 11:08  |  Ralph 17/06/07
  32.   Gaza is not the issue 11:12  |  guido 17/06/07
  33.   Barak 11:12  |  MR 17/06/07
  34.   Go get em, IDF/IAF! 11:13  |  Underminer 17/06/07
  35.   Another military operation - and another and another 11:18  |  Joe 17/06/07
  36.   I Strongly Doubt This 11:19  |  Yosemite 17/06/07
  37.   Information where leb. Nassrallah is hinding in bunker 11:21  |  Informant 17/06/07
  38.   to Ken Jurist: big apes 11:22  |  Ken 17/06/07
  39.   #25, S 11:22  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 17/06/07
  40.   My God, exactly what Israel needed: 11:22  |  Andreas 17/06/07
  41.   BARAK? HE WANTED TO GIVE AWAY 1/2 OF JERUSALEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 11:26  |  Bystander 17/06/07
  42.   #13 CLICKFOOL AND WISHES THAT WILL FAIL 11:29  |  paul harris 17/06/07
  43.   #25 INDY THEN THEY WILL HAVE TO HAVE SOMETHING THEY DONT HAVE 11:31  |  paul harris 17/06/07
  44.   With Peretz gone Israel will Prevail 11:46  |  Dagma 17/06/07
  45.   25 Yehuda: Where are you getting your info from Bush or FOX 11:50  |  Tupac 17/06/07
  46.   Seiss (Dino) 11:51  |  Gil 17/06/07
  47.   CFOOL Where does the article mention "cakewalk" It does mention 11:53  |  PETER SM 17/06/07
  48.   can`t wait... 11:56  |  Hizbullahi 17/06/07
  49.   Hamas has been waiting for this 11:59  |  Frederique 17/06/07
  50.   Didn`t work against Hezbollah what makes him think this 12:00  |  Tupac 17/06/07
  51.   Bomb them Barak 12:01  |  Big Al 17/06/07
  52.   Only if rocket attacks start up again 12:05  |  SystemF 17/06/07
  53.   Gaza: wait till the stables stink 12:16  |  Jon 17/06/07
  54.   BARAK skirts 12:22  |  Imad 17/06/07
  55.   Barak gets a brief swan song 12:25  |  Natallie Durson 17/06/07
  56.   Gaza, a quagmire? 12:32  |  edward 17/06/07
  57.   # 23 Albert # 46 Gil 12:35  |  Swiss (Dino) 17/06/07
  58.   Barak has long since proved ineptitude 12:50  |  Raymond Deane 17/06/07
  59.   "Within it`s borders?" 12:52  |  H50 17/06/07
  60.   #39 Cipora 12:52  |  S 17/06/07
  61.   Bystander, get over yourself 12:58  |  bbl 17/06/07
  62.   TUPAC.#50 Hezbala stopped firing. 13:00  |  PETER SM 17/06/07
  63.   WHY INFORM THE ENEMY? IDIOTS!!!!!!! 13:01  |  Yossi 17/06/07
  64.   Imad, #29you are mistaken 13:02  |  bbl 17/06/07
  65.   Clikky & newspapers 13:03  |  Rufus 17/06/07
  66.   #47 Peter - clickfool desperately plays the probablity game 13:07  |  CK Tan 17/06/07
  67.   #50 TUPAC DECIDES THAT NEW TACTICS ARE NOT PRESENT 13:09  |  paul harris 17/06/07
  68.   It is too early for offensive 13:14  |  Margola 17/06/07
  69.   Hizbullcrap #48 13:35  |  gaoni 17/06/07
  70.   Clickfool on Barak/Gaza 13:36  |  Zardos 17/06/07
  71.   Clickfool, Re Military Operations & Eating Crow 13:39  |  Dutch 17/06/07
  72.   #56, S 13:44  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 17/06/07
  73.   Israeli Settlers are the real Hamastan within Palestinian borders 13:48  |  Dutch 17/06/07
  74.   Don`t expose military plans 14:00  |  Brod 17/06/07
  75.   Bluff and Spin 14:15  |  Dyinglikeflies 17/06/07
  76.   BARAK the new joke hehehe 14:18  |  sweden 17/06/07
  77.   In order to avoid bloodshed and death, please SURRENDER Hamas 14:25  |  Alicia 17/06/07
  78.   Hamas may have made an error 14:33  |  Marc 17/06/07
  79.   Barak planning to furter than any other PM 14:34  |  Labhras 17/06/07
  80.   How to lose a war... let the media know your every move! 14:47  |  Nannette 17/06/07
  81.   Imad #54 und #29 14:51  |  almagor 17/06/07
  82.   Propably no more than verbal muscle flexing 15:06  |  Ben Alofs 17/06/07
  83.   How Mobbing-Media Hypocricy Works 15:06  |  Arik 17/06/07
  84.   US arms now in the hands of Hamas? 15:07  |  Dav 17/06/07
  85.   Israel -- kicked out of Lebanon in 2000?! 15:08  |  Mythbuster 17/06/07
  86.   To: #63 Yossi 15:17  |  Imad 17/06/07
  87. &nb