News Brief13:58 PM

(IsraelNN.com) IDF Chief of Staff Gabi Ashkenazi and his close aides have switched their view and now back a full-scale counterterrorist operation in Gaza, the Hebrew newspaper Ma'ariv reported. Lt. Gen. Ashkenazi previously has said that he wants the IDF prepared to enter Gaza but is against the move so long as diplomatic efforts and targeting terrorists are effective measures. Intelligence officers also have warned that heavy casualties would be suffered unless a way is found to overcome an underground city of bunkers that Hamas has built in the Gaza region.

The latest casualties of continuing rocket attacks and the likelihood that Hamas is using the lack of major retaliation as an opportunity to smuggle advanced weapons into Gaza have combined to change his view, the newspaper reported.