Israel Situation Links

Thanks to the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs for the links and summaries. I am busy at work (first day of the month) so this will have to tide you over for the time being.

Striking Deep into Israel, Hamas Employs an Upgraded Arsenal – Mark Mazzetti – By firing rockets deep into Israeli territory, Hamas has in recent days displayed an arsenal that has been upgraded with weapons parts smuggled into Gaza since it seized control of the territory 18 months ago, according to American and Israeli officials. Hamas and other militant groups have lobbed thousands of rockets into Israel since 2001. The difference now, officials said, is that Hamas is using more of the imported Katyusha rockets, which have a longer range than the homemade Kassam rockets it relied on in the past. A senior Israeli military official said Israeli intelligence believed Hamas took advantage of a six-month truce with Israel to bolster its stockpiles. American and Israeli officials said there was evidence that some Hamas fighters might have been schooled in urban assault t! actics at Iranian camps run by the Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards. In April, the Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center released a report saying Hamas had been engaged in a military buildup since the group took control of Gaza in June 2007. The report cited data by the Israel Security Agency asserting that Hamas had smuggled at least 80 tons of explosives into Gaza since then. (New York Times)
See also Report: Palestinian Rocket and Mortar Fire on Israel in 2008
In 2008, the terrorist organizations significantly increased the scope of rocket attacks on Israel. One million Israeli civilians are threatened by Palestinian rocket fire from Gaza. (Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center)

Egypt: Hamas Must Stop Rocket Fire at Israel – Lee Keath – Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said Thursday that Hamas must ensure rocket fire stops in any truce deal to halt Israel’s assault in Gaza, criticizing Palestinian militants for giving Israel an excuse to launch the bombardment. Aboul Gheit repeated that Egypt cannot open the Rafah border crossing unless Abbas’ Palestinian Authority – which runs the West Bank – controls the crossing and international monitors are present. He said Egypt had proposed that Arab foreign ministers who gathered in Cairo Wednesday request that Hamas allow PA control of Rafah, but Syria rejected the proposal. (AP)

See also Egypt Hunting Hamas Operatives in Sinai – Roee Nahmias – Egypt’s Al-Ahram weekly quoted official! sources as saying that Egyptian security forces are hunting for several Hamas operatives who have infiltrated Sinai and are aiming to target Egyptian forces. Egyptian authorities have called on locals to refrain from assisting the infiltrators in any way. Meanwhile, Mohammed Bassiouni, former Egyptian ambassador to Israel and currently chairman of the parliament’s Foreign Relations Committee, criticized Hamas Thursday on Cairo’s state television, saying, “Where are the Hamas leaders now, when Gazans are being killed? They are all in hiding.” (Ynet News)

UN Fails to Make Progress on GazaThe UN Security Council has discussed a draft resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire to halt the Israeli-Palestinian violence. But the meeting failed to vote on the Libyan draft after ambassadors from the U.S. and UK said it contained nothing about Palestinian attacks on Israel. The U.S. ambassador at the UN said he believed it was up to Israel and Hamas themselves to agree to a cease-fire, and that the UN should not impose one. (BBC News)

Palestinian Arrested for Shooting Israelis in DenmarkDanish police on Thursday arrested a 27-year-old man of Palestinian origin on suspicion of shooting and wounding two Israeli citizens at a shopping mall in central Denmark. (Reuters)