The Israeli Air Force is reported to have knocked out some 40, or more, Hamas targets in five minutes as the current Jewish/Muslim war kicks off in Gaza. The devastating opening to this war has been described as the Israeli version of "Shock and Awe".
Planning, (we learned very recently) for this raid was initiated at least six months ago by the Israeli military. The decision that "Operation Cast Lead" was "a go" for Saturday morning was, in fact, made Friday morning only one day before the bombs began to rain down on Hamas.
Hamas had evacuated many of their command and control centers earlier in the week, in expectation of a Israeli raid. But much of the command personnel had returned to those centers when they received word that Israel had put off making a decision on when the raid would begin until Sunday. Thus, they were right where Israel wanted them when the air assault began, right beneath the bombs.
Egypt's President, Hosni Mubarak, was informed, in person, by Tzipi Livni, the leader of Israel's Kadima political party, after Livni flew to Cairo, for that explicit purpose, on Wednesday, while Defense Minister Ehud Barak continued to work out last minute details of the raid. So, even Israel's neighbor, Egypt, which shares the other Gaza border knew this was coming. There is an excellent article on this HERE.
Months ago the IDF had been given orders to do extensive recon to gather intelligence in Gaza and secure info on such things as the location of Hamas bases, weapon storage sites, the location of training camps, even coordinates of the homes of senior Hamas officials as well as the coordinates for other unspecified Hamas facilities. This is NOT a knee jerk reaction by Israel to those Hamas rocket attacks which have killed dozens of Israelis and destroyed homes and businesses as much as 30 kilometers inside Israel.
Already, the UN is calling for the violence to end and for Israel to avoid the killing of Palestinian civilians. Little has been said about Hamas killing Israeli civilians with those rockets. This is perfectly normal in a world warped by its thinly disguised hatred for all things Jewish and, especially, the state of Israel.
The UN statement went on to urge Israel to take necessary measures, including the opening of border crossings, to ensure Gaza's people were supplied with food, fuel and medical treatment. Israeli Radio reports tell us that Ehud Barak, the Israeli Defense Minister, did permit the borders to be partially opened to allow in medical supplies and basic humanitarian aid on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the White House is coming down, fore square, on Israel's side. "These people are nothing but thugs, so Israel is going to defend its people against terrorists like Hamas that indiscriminately kill their own people," White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe is reported to have said. On Saturday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said that the United States holds Hamas responsible for the renewal of violence in the Gaza Strip.
From the "Land Down Under", Australia, the Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, also blamed Hamas for the current war. Gillard is reported to have said: "Clearly, we are calling on Hamas and other militants to cease shelling southern Israel. Obviously they have broken the cease-fire and engaged in an act of aggression against Israel. Israel has responded. We are echoing the calls from around the world for parties to move back to a ceasefire."
And so the family feud goes on. Nothing much has changed since Abraham booted his son, Ishmael, out of his camp and anointed Isaac, his son by Sarah, the birthright. It is my opinion that the death and destruction we see today, in 2008, can be traced directly back to that incident, thousands of years ago.
It is foolish to even consider brokering a peace between those two half-brothers. No fight is as vicious, or as deadly, as a fight amongst family members. It is the height of arrogance, even for presidents or kings, to believe one can bring peace between today's descendants of Isaac and Ishmael.
As we watch the continuation of this on-going struggle play out before our very eyes on the TV screens today, we must remember that this is only the latest flare up between these two peoples who have fought for thousands of years.
No matter how this current war ends, the struggle will not end here. It will go on. No matter what the US does, or what the United Nations does, nothing will change. Only God can end this combat, which, in our opinion, is fueled by pure jealous rage.
J. D. Longstreet is a conservative Southern American (A native sandlapper and an adopted Tar Heel) with a deep passion for the history, heritage, and culture of the southern states of America. At the same time he is a deeply loyal American believing strongly in "America First".
He is a thirty-year veteran of the broadcasting business, as an "in the field" and "on-air" news reporter (contributing to radio, TV, and newspapers) and a conservative broadcast commentator.
Longstreet is a veteran of the US Army and US Army Reserve. He is a member of the American Legion and the Sons of Confederate Veterans. A lifelong Christian, Longstreet subscribes to "old Lutheranism" to express and exercise his faith.
In addition to appearing at WEBCommentary, J.D. Longstreet's articles are posted as:
Cover
•
Commentary
•
Books & Reviews
•
Climate Change
•
Site Links
•
Feedback
