RTSun, 31 Mar 2019 16:06 UTC
© Reuters / Amir CohenAn Israeli soldier sits on an armored military vehicle near the border fence with Gaza, in southern Israel on March 29, 2019.
Israeli military units will remain stationed at the border of the Palestinian Gaza Strip enclave for an unspecified amount of time, and they are ready to wage an "extensive campaign" if needed, PM Benjamin Netanyahu has said.
The Israeli leader produced the warlike comments on Sunday while greeting Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who came to visit the country at a
"tense time," as Netanyahu put it.
"I have ordered that IDF forces remain fully deployed around the Gaza Strip. This includes tanks, artillery, ground forces and air forces. We are prepared for any scenario and - if need be - an extensive campaign. We will do what needs to be done for the security of Israel," Netanyahu stated.
Tensions have been high around Gaza for months already,
yet they appear to be rising even more as the elections in Israel loom. Netanyahu, who has been reigning Israel for 12 years, is facing a strong challenge this time in the form of former IDF chief Benny Gantz and rival of the incumbent PM Yair Lapid's Blue and White coalition.
Additional units of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) were sent to the Gaza strip earlier this week in response to a rocket, presumably fired by the Hamas group early on Monday. The projectile hit a house north of Tel Aviv, injuring seven people including two infants.
In mid-March Israel launched a massive attack on the Gaza Strip, hitting around 100
"Hamas-linked" targets. The operation was also launched in retaliation to rocket fire.
Comment: Bibi's
already begun. There's an election coming. Gotta look tough against the stone-throwing kids.
Israel has pelted the positions of Palestinian militants with tank fire after five rockets were launched from Gaza without inflicting any damage. The exchange of fire comes after a day of mass Palestinian protests.
Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have confirmed that its tanks shelled "a number of Hamas military posts" in Gaza in retaliation to an earlier attack by Palestinians that saw them firing five rockets towards Israeli territory.
The rockets landed inside the Eshkol region along the border with Gaza, triggering sirens in the area shortly after midnight. The local authorities said the rockets did not inflict any damage or casualties, striking open areas.
It's unclear if the Israeli retaliatory strike resulted in any damage to the militant group that has been ruling the besieged Gaza since 2007 amid an ongoing blockade of the stretch of land along the Mediterranean by Israel and Egypt.
It is the first cross-border fire incident since earlier this week, which saw two days of heavy bombing by Israel in response to a missile attack from Gaza that hit a home injuring seven Israelis on Monday.
© ReutersFlame and smoke are seen during an Israeli air strike in Gaza City March 25, 2019.
Israeli planes bombarded what they claimed were Hamas positions in Gaza. PM Netanyahu ordered an infantry brigade and artillery battalion to move to the Gaza border on Monday. The bombing continued into Tuesday, as the situation risked spiraling into an all-out war, with the Israeli PM hinting at a potential military invasion of Gaza.
The violence has subsided due to Egyptian mediation and a shaky truce held during Saturday's mass protests along the Gaza border. While the IDF sang rare praise for Hamas, commending it for exercising restraint during the rally that marked the one-year anniversary of the Great March of Return protests, the protests still did not end casualty-free for the Palestinians. The Gaza Health Ministry reported that three 17-year-old teenagers were killed in the protests while about 300 people were injured.
Comment: Bibi's already begun. There's an election coming. Gotta look tough against the stone-throwing kids.