Israel yesterday promised to launch a massive ground operation if Palestinians shoot at the thousands of Israeli settlers leaving Gaza during the much-anticipated evacuation later this month.
In the first detailed threat following repeated warnings, Deputy Defense Minister Zeev Boim said that if Palestinians fire on the columns of Israelis, the military will respond with about 12,000 to 15,000 troops, as it did three years ago following a series of terror attacks.
“We would stop the withdrawal, we would deliver a harsh strike, a large-scale operation,” Boim told Israel Radio, promising “about 10 days to two weeks of a heavy strike against terror, to uproot it.”
Israel is set to start evacuating all 21 Gaza Strip settlements and four in the West Bank Aug. 15. Housing Minister Isaac Herzog said the government expects half of the 9,000 settlers to leave beforehand.
With Post Wire Services