[AGL] headline of article from Jerusalem Post: Barak: My gut instinct is to respond

[Michael Eisenstadt]

What a crock! The option to email a friend doesn't send the article
to friend, just sends a link and a bunch of ads.

The article is a good leading indicator of Israel government's
intentions. While Bush is visiting the area they will hold back.
After Bush returns home, the next terrorist mortar or rocket
that kills at least 2 Israelis will be seriously considered as the
justification for a re-entry into Gaza with a major military operation.
Barak is Minister of Defense. Olmert is not a military man so
Barak's opinion as to feasability will be decisive.

************************************************************************

Despite the urge to respond harshly to rocket attacks from the Gaza
Strip, Israel should bide its time and wait for the right opportunity
to strike Hamas, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Thursday, a day
after a Grad type rocket wounded more than a dozen people in an
Ashkelon mall.

Palestinians fire Grad rocket on Netivot

Barak, who spoke at the closing session of the "Facing Tomorrow"
Presidential Conference, said that the "situation in Gaza is quite
complicated. My gut reaction is to respond, but when the blood boils
it is important to carefully weigh one's options."

He added that "we will reinstate quiet and security in Sderot and the
Gaza periphery; we'll get results - not mere words - at the right
time."

"What is demanded of us now is resolve, a deep breath, nerves of steel
and cruel tolerance until the proper time," he said.

"As a government we have the utmost political and moral responsibility
to do everything possible and open every door in order to find the
opportunity to make peace. On the other hand, our neighbors must
arrive at the understanding that Israel cannot be defeated with
terrorism."

Earlier Thursday, Barak promised Ashkelon residents that Israel would
not suffer continued attacks without a response.

"This incident is not simple, and proves that despite the hits that
the Palestinians are sustaining in Gaza, they are still shooting," he
said, adding that "if the rocket had hit a roof of a house, I would've
been going to a funeral."

Fifteen people were wounded, including four seriously, by a Grad-model
Katyusha rocket that hit a shopping center in Ashkelon just hours
after US President George W. Bush arrived to celebrate the state's
60th anniversary.

The rocket, fired from Beit Lahiya in northern Gaza, struck the Hutzot
Mall in southern Ashkelon, causing considerable damage. Several people
were initially trapped under the rubble. The four people in serious
condition included a 24-year-old woman and her young daughter. In
addition, 87 people were treated for shock.

In response, the IDF launched an air strike against a Hamas
observation post in the Saja'iya neighborhood in Gaza City. According
to Palestinian sources, two operatives were killed in the strike.

Palestinians also claimed that the IDF fired artillery shells from
north of the Strip. No casualties were reported in this alleged
separate strike.

Late Wednesday night, two mortar shells fired by Palestinians in the
Gaza Strip landed in open areas south of Ashkelon. No casualties or
damage were reported.