By KUNA
Gaza : Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said on Sunday that Israel is ready for any possible military escalation in Gaza Strip, holding Hamas responsibility for such situation.
Barak told Israeli radio that only Hamas bears the responsibility for the deteriorating situation in Gaza Strip and will pay for it dearly.
The Israeli minister promised more military operations in Gaza Strip that claimed 65 lives and injured more than 200 people.
Land and air operations will continue, he said, and will attack weapon caches and Hamas infrastructure and other Palestinian factions.
He claimed that these military escalations aimed at stopping the Palestinian shelling of southern Israel, noting that this goal will be achieved in the next couple of days.
In his statement he refused to reveal whether or not the Israeli forces are going to attack Hamas leaders, stressing he will not reveal his application for Hamas.
Meanwhile, the Israeli Army officials declared more than once that they were at a state of war against the Palestinian brigades in Gaza Strip, claiming that such operations aimed to undermine their ability to launch missiles to southern Israel.
The Israeli Army executed a wide-scale incursion in the eastern outskirts of Rafah City and spraying the city with bullets and mortor shells with extensive coverage of combat helicopters.
“These incursion coincide with an earlier explosion targeting a large group of Israeli special forces infiltrating into the city of Rafah causing causalities,” local radio in Gaza reported.
Israeli government members are scheduled to review in their weekly session the reports of army leaders and senior security official regarding developments in Gaza.
Moreover, Barak told an Israeli radio that the Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will conduct a series of negotiations to evaluate the situation, while the mini-ministerial council of security and political affairs will gather on Wednesday to determine the Israeli military future activity in Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, a strike was staged in Palestinian cities and refugee camps in Gaza Strip, protesting against the human massacres executed by the Israeli troops.
The single-day stike was called for by the deposed Palestinian government.