(Dan Tri) – Israel was said to have planned to launch a ground attack on Gaza over the weekend, but was forced to postpone it, the New York Times reported, citing knowledgeable sources.
An Israeli tank near the border with Gaza (Photo: Reuters).
According to the New York Times, Israel decided to postpone its ground offensive against Gaza over the weekend due to adverse weather.
`The offensive operation was initially planned to be carried out on the weekend, but was forced to postpone it by a few days, at least partly due to adverse weather,` the source said on October 15.
Three unnamed Israeli officers also said that according to the plan, there will be tens of thousands of soldiers, including special forces units, along with tanks, aircraft, helicopters, gunboats, and drones.
The goal of the operation is to destroy Hamas, which has controlled Gaza since 2007.
This will likely be the largest ground offensive against Gaza in more than a decade.
Another big question is whether Israel wants to control Gaza directly or through a new Palestinian Authority if it is to achieve its goal of ending Hamas’ power there.
As for Israel, military officials said that a ground attack campaign would take many months and cause large casualties on both sides because Israel would have to destroy a complex network of Hamas tunnels.
The Israel-Hamas conflict flared up again on October 7 when Hamas suddenly fired more than 2,000 rockets toward Israel.
Fighting over the past week has left more than 1,900 people in Gaza and about 1,300 people in Israel dead, with thousands more injured.
Israel declared war on Hamas and carried out an unprecedented airstrike campaign against Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced last week that the country’s army had launched an unprecedented large-scale force in response to Hamas, but also emphasized that `this is just the beginning`.
The Israeli army over the weekend called on more than 1 million people to evacuate from northern to southern Gaza, apparently in preparation for a ground offensive.
Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian warned that Iran will respond if Israel carries out a ground offensive in Gaza.
In addition to the ground attack plan, Israel has blockaded Gaza, blocking the supply of electricity, water and other necessities to this area.
Israeli Energy Minister Israel Katz said yesterday that the country decided to restore water supply to the southern part of Gaza according to the agreement between Prime Minister Netanyahu and US President Joe Biden.
However, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip said that this Israeli move was only intended to divert public attention and did not have much meaning due to the fact that many water pipes were damaged after more than a week of fighting.
