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World Jewish News
Israeli troops enter Gaza Strip
03.01.2009
Israeli ground troops have started to enter the Gaza Strip, Israeli military officials have confirmed, a week after the offensive against Hamas began.
An Israeli military spokeswoman said the intention was to take control of areas from which Palestinian militants have been firing rockets into Israel.
Witnesses say armoured vehicles crossed into northern Gaza at four separate points, supported by helicopters.
Earlier, Israel intensified air and artillery attacks on the territory.
In one raid, at least 13 people were killed when a missile struck a crowded mosque in Beit Lahiya, Palestinian medics said.
Witnesses said more than 200 people had been inside the Ibrahim al-Maqadna mosque for evening prayers when it was struck.
Correspondents say Israel has accused Hamas of using mosques to hide weapons and ammunition, but this is the first time a mosque has been hit at prayer time.
Militants in Gaza meanwhile fired more rockets into southern Israel on Saturday, one of which hit the port of Ashdod, injuring two people.
Israel has carried out more than 800 strikes on the Gaza Strip since launching the offensive eight days ago, including 40 on Saturday.
The UN has warned of a worsening humanitarian crisis, and believes 25% of more than 400 Palestinians killed by Israel so far were civilians. Israel says about 80% of those killed were Hamas militants. Four Israelis have been killed by rocket fire from Gaza.
'Not war-hungry'
An Israeli military spokeswoman confirmed the incursion had begun and said the objective was "to destroy the Hamas terror infrastructure in the area of operations".
"We are going to take some of the launch areas used by Hamas," Maj Avital Leibovitch told reporters.
Later, Defence Minister Ehud Barak said the ground campaign against Hamas "will not be easy or short, but we are determined."
"Our aim is to force Hamas to stop its hostile activities against Israel and Israelis from Gaza, and to bring about a significant change in the situation in the southern part of Israel," he told a news conference.
"We have carefully weighed all our operations. We are not war-hungry, but we shall not allow a situation in which our towns, villages and civilians are constantly targeted by Hamas."
Mr Barak also said Israel would "keep a sensitive eye" on its northern border with Lebanon, where it fought a short but bloody war with the Shia Hezbollah movement in 2006.
"We hope the situation will remain calm. Nevertheless, we are ready and alert to face any unwanted development in that area," he added.
The BBC's Paul Wood in Jerusalem says this is probably just the first wave of the assault, since there are said to be some 10,000 Israeli troops and hundreds of tanks massed on the border with Gaza.
The office of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has also announced that the government has ordered the urgent call-up of "tens of thousands" of extra military reservists.
Just before the ground offensive began, Hamas issued a statement promising that Palestinian children would be picking over the debris of Israeli tanks and the body parts of Israeli soldiers.
The militant group's exiled political leader, Khaled Meshaal, meanwhile warned Israel against a ground offensive, saying that a "black destiny" awaited Israeli forces if the entered Gaza.
"We will not break, we will not surrender or give in to your conditions," he said in a speech from the Syrian capital, Damascus.
Our correspondent says this promises to be a very bloody encounter.
Ceasefire calls
Tens of thousands of demonstrators meanwhile have been protesting worldwide against Israel's military operations in Gaza, calling for an immediate ceasefire.
The biggest rally was in Paris where more than 20,000 people gathered.
About 10,000 people joined a rally in London, during which hundreds of shoes were thrown at the entrance to Prime Minister Gordon Brown's residence, echoing the protest of an Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at US President George W Bush last month.
Protests also took place in Brussels, The Hague, Amsterdam, Ankara and Cyprus.
In Israel itself, tens of thousands of Israeli Arabs staged a protest against Israel's actions in the town of Sakhnin. One politician, Jamal Zahalka, said it had been the biggest demonstration by Israel's Arab minority in the past 10 years.
President Bush, however, blamed the violence firmly on Hamas.
Источник: BBC NEWS
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