By RIA Novosti,
Tel Aviv : Israel could launch a major ground incursion in the Gaza Strip this summer to cripple Hamas’s infrastructure, The Jerusalem Post quoted unidentified sources in Jerusalem as saying.
They said the incursion, similar to a 2002 operation in the West Bank, would not take place until mid-June, a month after U.S. President George W. Bush’s visit to Israel.
After the operation, Israel would hand Gaza over to Egypt or a “third party”, the sources said.
There has been no confirmation or denial of the report from Israeli authorities, but the Prime Minister’s Office told the paper: “we have made clear that we hold Hamas responsible for the situation in the Gaza Strip, and will hold them accountable.”
In the latest surge of violence in the crowded enclave, Israeli military strikes killed at least 20 Palestinians on Wednesday, mainly civilians, and three Israeli servicemen were killed in a Hamas ambush.
United Nations Secretary Ban Ki-moon and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas both condemned the killing of civilians in the strikes, the most severe since Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip last month that cost the lives of over 120 Gaza residents.