2023-05-09 11:06:01
Jerusalem / Abdel Raouf Arnaout / Anatolia
Israel announced that Operation Defensive Arrow, which it launched in Gaza at dawn on Tuesday, is targeting Islamic Jihad, but its eyes are waiting for Hamas’ response.
At dawn on Tuesday, the Israeli army announced the launch of a military operation against the Gaza Strip, dubbed “The Defensive Arrow”, which resulted in the killing of 13 Palestinians, including 4 children and 4 women, and 3 leaders of the “Quds Brigades”, the military wing of the “Islamic Jihad” movement.
These developments come about a week after a military escalation erupted in Gaza following the death of prisoner Khader Adnan in Israeli prisons, and the escalation ended at dawn on Wednesday with a cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinian factions.
Watch Hamas’ position
Observers assert that “Hamas”, which controls the Gaza Strip, is more powerful than the Islamic Jihad movement, and its intervention may alter the course of the entire Israeli operation.
The former head of Israeli military intelligence, Tamir Hayman, predicted that the non-participation of “Hamas” would shorten the time period for the operation.
“Hamas joining the fire from the northern front may also lead to a significant prolongation of the operation,” he said on Twitter on Tuesday.
“Mixed cities (in Israel) and the West Bank are another arena to watch out for, and although they have less chance of joining, they are more sensitive,” he added.
And Hyman added: “But here, too, Hamas has a great influence, and a lot depends on its decision to join or not.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy held a series of meetings to assess the security situation, Tuesday morning and noon.
The Israeli Cabinet for Security and Political Affairs, the Cabinet, met this evening at the Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv to assess the situation.
Israel is preparing for the possibility of Palestinians firing rockets from the Strip into the Gaza border and southern Israel.
During the last hours, the opening of shelters was announced in a number of locations in southern Israel.
* ‘Stepping down is hard’
For his part, a senior Israeli political official told the Hebrew newspaper Maariv: “The campaign is targeting the Islamic Jihad. It is impossible to guarantee that Hamas will not join.”
As for the military correspondent for the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, Elior Levy, he considered that “one decision by Hamas will determine the course of the operation in Gaza.”
He said, “Although Islamic Jihad is currently the focus of discussion, eyes are now turning to Hamas. The decision of (Hamas leader in Gaza Yahya) Sinwar, (head of its military wing Muhammad) Deif, and (head of its political bureau Ismail) Haniyeh to join the campaign Or not, he will decide what the coming days and hours here and there will look like.”
He added: “The entry of Hamas into the battle will lead to a more severe escalation.”
He continued, “Hamas has proven three times in recent years that it is able to sit on the fence and not engage in military skirmishes between Israel and Islamic Jihad. But this time it will be more difficult for it to step aside.”
A real dilemma
While the Israeli news channel “12” indicated, on Tuesday, that the Minister of Defense agreed to call up a limited reserve for the jobs required for the operation.
It quoted Gallant as saying that Israel carried out “a specific operation against the Islamic Jihad leadership in Gaza, but we must be prepared for any scenario.”
The channel also quoted an unnamed senior Israeli security source: “Our goal is to keep Hamas out of the campaign. We have made it clear to them through mediators, but we are ready for any development.”
The Israeli channel said: “Islamic Jihad will respond, and its ability to challenge Israel should not be underestimated, but the real dilemma that will decide the continuation of the campaign is whether Hamas will act according to its interests or will it succumb to pressure and join the fight?”
The channel quoted Israeli military estimates that a large barrage of rockets would be launched from Gaza.
She said, “Estimates in Israel indicate that the other side is trying to prepare a large air strike towards the south and perhaps the center of the country, and therefore the shooting may be delayed.”
She added, “Another explanation is that Jihad is delaying the response because it wants to work with Hamas and exerts great pressure on it to join the response.”
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