IDF ready for ground push, waiting for official go-ahead

The Israel Defense Forces has finished preparing for a ground operation in the Gaza Strip. However, it will not begin such an incursion until it receives the go-ahead from the government, which is still discussing whether it should first agree to a 48-hour cease-fire intended to prevent further escalation.

At least 30 Palestinians - including two sisters aged 5 and 12 - were killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza yesterday, and Palestinians fired more than 40 rockets on southern Israel by yesterday evening. A Katyusha rocket hit Be'er Sheva - located 37 kilometers from Gaza - for the first time yesterday. Ofakim and Rahat, both 25 kilometers from Gaza, were also hit by their first Katyushas.

Hamas took responsibility for the Katyushas aimed at Be'er Sheva, and its military wing said last night that it plans to fire at Israeli targets that are even further away as long as the IDF operation continues.

More than 380 Palestinians, including 36 children and nine women, have been killed by Israeli forces since Operation Cast Lead began on Saturday, according to Palestinian sources.

The Israel Air Force continued its intensive search for rocket launchers yesterday. "We haven't finished the work yet," IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi told President Shimon Peres yesterday.

Israel bombed dozens of smuggling tunnels in Rafah last night, the second such attack in two days. The attack came after Israel advised the Egyptian army to move its soldiers away from the border so they wouldn't get hurt in the bombing. Aside from the tunnels, the number of targets attacked by the air force decreased yesterday.

Israeli warplanes bombed the Hamas government complex in Tel al-Hawa, in the Gaza City area, knocking down the seven-story buildings housing Hamas' foreign, finance and labor ministries early yesterday. In a separate attack, Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh's office was bombed a second time.

The Israel Navy also took part in the operation, with navy ships attacking targets along the Gaza coast.

Hamas accused Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas of establishing an emergency operations room to prepare plans for a Fatah takeover of Gaza if Israel begins a ground incursion. Hamas' military wing vowed that if Israel attempted to bring its troops into the Strip, the children of Gaza would soon be collecting soldiers' body parts.