Israel has decided to give a chance to the efforts deployed by Egypt and UN envoy Nickolay Mladenov to ease tensions, despite Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ opposition to such endeavor.
The political and security cabinet endorsed on Wednesday the position taken by the Israeli army and other security forces, which opposes the launching of a large-scale military operation in the Gaza Strip against Hamas.
Israeli sources said that the Israeli army was committed to its view that the situation in Gaza did not justify the launching of a broad and comprehensive military confrontation against Hamas, and that an opportunity should be given to Egyptian and UN efforts, which aim at new arrangements to rebuild the infrastructure in Gaza.
The sources quoted intelligence chiefs as saying that Hamas has returned to hold weekly demonstrations near the separation wall with Israel with the participation of 20,000 people, and increased demonstrations held throughout the week, and “thus seeks to exert pressure on the Palestinian Authority on the one hand, and Israel on the other.”
Israeli reports quoted Army Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot as saying that any harsh military response could further deteriorate the security situation and lead to a wider conflict. He added that the situation in the West Bank was also dangerous and that his forces were seeking to prevent the explosion there as well.
He stressed that an escalation in the West Bank would be more threatening than an explosion on the border with the Gaza Strip, from the military point of view, because it might involve severe clashes between Palestinians and settlers.
