The Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee met Monday to discuss the ongoing Operation Cast Lead in Gaza and rocket attacks in Israel's south. The meeting was attended by Defense Minister Ehud Barak, who updated committee members on the situation.
Gaza terrorists now manage to hit populated areas with approximately 40 percent of rockets fired, Barak said. Roughly 60 percent of the rockets and mortar shells fired at Israel still land in open areas.
Ten percent of the rockets cause damage, and two percent have scored direct hits on buildings, Barak continued. Gaza terrorists fired over 30 rockets at Israeli cities on Monday, lightly wounding nine Israelis and hitting a daycare center. The daycare was closed at the time of the strike, and no children were hurt.
Barak: Preparing for Next Step
Barak also discussed the cabinet's decision to call up tens of thousands of IDF reservists. The call-up was approved “to allow us to prepare for the next stage, if it becomes necessary.” Most of the soldiers told to report to reserves in the latest call-up are assigned to combat units.
Barak mentioned threats from Hizbullah, and said Israel would be prepared for any emergency on the northern border. Hizbullah head Hassan Nasrallah recently threatened to join the fight with Israel if Israel hit Hamas in Gaza.
"Hizbullah's abilities have increased threefold from what they were before the Second Lebanon War, and they now have 42,000 missiles, compared to the 14,000 they had before the war,” Barak said. The Lebanese army announced less than two weeks ago that it had found seven rockets aimed at Israel a short distance from the border.
On Monday, Lebanese Information Minister Tarek Mitri said Lebanon would not be dragged into war due to Israel's operation in Gaza. There is no evidence that Hizbullah plans to start a war either, he said.
Shalom: Window is Closing
MK Silvan Shalom (Likud) said at the meeting that Israel's “diplomatic window” is closing due to expected international pressure. “We must prepare quickly and act with determination to decide the battle and obtain a ceasefire that will remove the missile threat,” he said.
Israel must not agree to “an imaginary ceasefire,” Shalom continued. The six-month ceasefire with Hamas in the second half of 2008 was “fictional” and allowed Hamas to obtain the missiles it currently uses to hit Be'er Sheva, he noted.