Sunday, January 4, 2009

9 Israeli Troops Killed, Dozens Hurt in Gaza Ground Op


Al-Manar

"04/01/2009 After a week of the “Operation Cast Lead” against Gaza, Israeli occupation army started on Saturday evening a ground military operation into the coastal strip in order to destroy the Hamas infrastructure in the area of operations.

And as it has vowed, the Palestinian resistance was waiting for the occupation soldiers to foil their aggression, killing nine of them and wounding dozens others, according to Ezz-eddine Al-Qassam, Hamas military wing. Israeli defense officials said that top commanders were split over whether to send in ground forces because such an operation could lead to heavy casualties.

On Sunday, Israeli occupation troops pushed deeper into Gaza and clashed in fierce battles with Hamas resistance fighters. Explosions shook the northern Gaza Strip and thick black smoke billowed skywards as fighting raged in the largest Israeli military operation since the 2006 war in Lebanon. A Palestinian resistance spokesman said the Israel is intensifying its shelling in the Strip to cover its harsh defeat there.

Infantry and tanks were operating in Netzarim, just three kilometers (nearly two miles) south of Gaza City, the main population centre of the densely populated territory, witnesses said. Heavy fighting was also reported north of Gaza City and outside the northern towns of Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanun and Jabaliya.

The ground invasion followed a week of intense air and naval bombardment unleashed on the Gaza Strip on December 27.

"Operation Cast Lead" had killed at least 463 Palestinians, including 80 children, and wounded more than 2,300 others before the ground troops rolled in, according to Gaza medics........"

حماس: مقتل9 جنود صهاينة وأسر جنديين وتدمير ميركافا

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