Israel considers new military operation in Gaza as Palestinian terrorists continue to fire rockets

Israel’s Air Force hit targets in the Gaza Strip overnight, scoring direct hits of tunnels used for the smuggling of arms from Egypt as well as a weapons storage facility. The IDF said terrorists in the Gaza Strip fired more than 110 rockets on Israeli territory since Saturday.

"The IDF will not tolerate any attempt to harm Israeli civilians, and will operate against anyone who uses terror against the State of Israel," a statement issued on Monday said.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said that nine missiles had hit Israel, all of them fired after 7:30 am local time on Monday. "Seven were fired at the Negev region and two towards the Ashkelon area," he told AFP, adding that one had landed in the yard of a house in Netivot. Medical sources said 26 people had to be treated for shock.

Egypt had tried to broker a ceasefire on Sunday.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak said: “Hamas is responsible for the rocket fire and all other attempts to harm our soldiers and civilians, even when other groups participate. And it is Hamas that will pay the heavy price. We will strike with an ever-growing intensity."

The spike in violence raised the specter of a broader Israeli military operation in Gaza, along the lines of its Operation Cast Lead in December 2008 and January 2009. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that Israel was "prepared to escalate" its response to Palestinian rocket fire. "The army is acting and will act forcefully against the terror organizations in the Gaza Strip," he told his Cabinet, adding: "The world must realize that Israel won't sit by idly in the face of attempts to attack us. We are prepared to escalate our actions."

However, Labor Party leader Shelly Yacimovich on Monday positioned herself against a possible ground operation in the Gaza Strip. "We are on the eve of elections, and operations beyond air attacks or targeted strikes require stability and national consensus at home," she told ‘Army Radio’ while on a tour of the rocket-hit south. "It could be that such an operation is necessary, but not now."