| 2007–2008 Israel–Gaza conflict | |||||||
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| Part of the Second Intifada | |||||||
Area of the conflict |
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| Belligerents | |||||||
| Israel (IDF) | Hamas PRC Islamic Jihad |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
| Gabi Ashkenazi Amir Peretz |
Khaled Meshaal Mohammed Deif Ramadan Shallah |
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| Casualties and losses | |||||||
| 11 killed[1] 131 wounded |
409 killed 436 wounded |
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| Palestinian civilians: 92 killed Israeli civilians: 9 killed 83 wounded |
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The 2007–2008 Israel–Gaza conflict refers to a series of battles between Palestinian militants and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) that began in mid-May 2007 when Israel responded to militant provocation with airstrikes. Palestinians fired more than 220 Qassam rockets at Israel (Sderot and western Negev) in over a week. The Israeli Air Force then fired missiles and bombs back into Gaza. The fighting came amid serious Palestinian factional violence and reports of growing level of humanitarian crisis in Gaza.[2] Hamas said they will continue to retaliate against Israeli strikes. Israel also arrested Hamas officials in the West Bank, including two cabinet members.[3][4][5][6]
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Since the latest truce, signed on November 26, 2006, militiamen of Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine and Hamas with his ‘Izz ad-Dīn al-Qassām Brigades have shelled the Western Negev with crude homemade rockets, called Qassam rockets. Hamas is the ruling faction of the Palestinian National Authority. Since the disengagement plan was executed, thereby removing the ongoing IDF military presence from the area, the militias, especially Hamas, have also smuggled large numbers of machine guns, anti-tank missiles, grenades, explosive devices, and even anti-aircraft missiles into the Gaza Strip, making it dangerous for Israeli forces to operate. In January 2008, Israeli ground and air forces launched an operation in the Gaza Strip in response to rocket fire, killing 10 Palestinians and wounding 40, most of them militants. One of them was the son of Hamas leader Mahmoud az-Zahar. Several hours later, a foreign volunteer working on Kibbutz Ein Hashlosha was killed by Palestinian sniper fire. On October 18, an Israeli soldier of the Golani Brigade was killed by sniper fire during an operation in Southern Gaza. In late April, heavy Palestinian inter-factional fighting broke out, especially between Hamas and Fatah. Leaders of both parties asked for cessation of the violence, calling instead for uniting against Israel. The week before the conflict broke out, more than thirty rockets a day had been fired at Israel. In response, on May 15, 2007, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz decided together with military leader Gabi Ashkenazi that they would increase efforts against the ongoing rocket fire.
In the first days of the conflict Israel responded with airstrikes at the very mobile Qassam launching cells, vehicles carrying Hamas militiamen, and buildings belonging to Hamas. The airstrikes may have been chosen because Hamas has very little AA weapons to defend themselves, so that the Israeli casualties will remain low. On May 20, Amir Peretz told the IAF to maintain pressure on Hamas. As a result of the ongoing aerial attacks, Hamas members stopped using cellphones, driving in cars, and gathering in groups to avoid further assassinations. A total of thirty Palestinians were killed in the airstrikes, two-thirds of them militants.[7]
On May 24, more than thirty members of the political wing of Hamas were arrested in the West Bank, including ministers and members of parliament. Some Hamas mayors and legislators were also seized by the Israeli military. The detained include the mayors of Nablus, Qalqilyah, and Beita as well as Education Minister Nasser Shaer.[8] Israel has said "as long as the Qassams will rain down on the Western Negev, all of Hamas' members will be responsible," including the political wing of Hamas. Hamas has similarly said as long as the "Zionist aggression" continues, their military wing will continue to fire Qassams on Israeli territory.[9]
On May 26, the Palestinian Minister of State, Wasfi Kabha of Hamas, was arrested by the IDF in a raid on his village close to the West Bank city of Jenin. An aide to the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas from Fatah, Saeb Erekat, reacted to the arrests: "We have urged the U.S. and the EU to intervene to release the ministers and lawmakers [...] this step does not help to achieve calm."[10]
By January 2008, the economic effects of Israel's blockade on Gaza had reached a critical threshold, according to a United Nations study.[11] Finally, on January 17, 2008, Israel sealed the border completely following a rise in rocket attacks. The breach of the Gaza-Egypt border began on January 23, 2008, after gunmen in the Gaza Strip set off an explosion near the Rafah Border Crossing, destroying part of the former Israeli Gaza Strip barrier. The United Nations estimates that as many as half the 1.5 million population of the Gaza Strip crossed the border into Egypt seeking food and supplies. Israeli police went on an increased alert due to fears that militants will acquire more weapons in Egypt.[12] On February 3, former Palestinian Foreign Minister, Mahmoud al-Zahar, announced that Hamas and Egypt would cooperate in controlling the border without Israeli oversight.[13] The border was closed, after 11 days, except for travelers returning home.[14]
Conflict continued as three Israeli missiles hit the Palestinian Interior Ministry in Gaza on February 27, 2008, hours after Palestinian militants fired more than 40 Qassam rockets into southern Israel.[15] Israeli aircraft February 28, 2008 bombed a police station near the Gaza City home of Hamas leader Ismail Haniya.[16] The Israeli military says its air and ground operations against militants firing rockets from northern Gaza have killed at least 23 armed Palestinians, while Palestinian sources have reported higher death tolls and say many civilians have also been killed.[17]
Israel began its air and ground operations on February 29.[18] The IDF's offensive in Gaza killed more than 100 Palestinians in less than a week.[19] In contrast Palestinian fired 150 rockets at Israel during a week which killed two Israeli soldiers and a civilian.[18] The United States called for an end to clashes between Israel and the Palestinians.[20] The Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, has accused Israel of "international terrorism", saying its assault on Gaza constitutes "more than a holocaust".[21] Later on March 3 he has suspended all contact with Israel over its assault on Gaza as the Israeli government sent warplanes to hit more targets early on Monday and vowed to continue its offensive.[22] The European Union on Sunday condemned what it called "disproportionate use of force" by the Israeli military in Gaza after 54 Palestinians were killed in the highest single day toll since fighting erupted in 2000.[23] United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also issued a condemnation of what he termed Israel's "excessive and disproportionate" response and called on Israel "to cease such attacks," while denouncing the ongoing rocket attacks on Sderot and Ashkelon.[24] In the Muslim world, demonstrators took to the streets to protest the IDF attacks. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Muslims to rise up and their leaders to hit Israel "in the face with their nations' anger,".[19] In Lebanon, hundreds of Hezbollah supporters gathered at the Fatima Gate at the border between Lebanon and Israel, shouting "Death to Israel" and waving Lebanese and Palestinian flags. In Egypt, thousands of students held protests at universities across the country calling on Arab leaders to stop Israeli aggression and support the Palestinians. Some protesters burned Israeli and American flags.[20] About 10,000 protesters, mainly from Jordan's mainstream Muslim Brotherhood and smaller opposition groups, took to the streets in one of the country's most vocal and largest anti-Israeli demonstrations in recent years.[19] Saudi Arabia meanwhile compared the IDF offensive to Nazi war crimes and called on the international community to stop what it called the "mass killings" of Palestinians. Turkey's Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that the IDF attacks can have no humanitarian justification and added that Israel was rejecting a diplomatic solution to the dispute.[20] Most Israeli tanks and troops pulled out of northern Gaza March 3, 2008, and an Israel Defense Forces spokesman confirmed that the Israeli military was ending offensive operations there after five days.[25]
On April 9, four Hamas fighters infiltrated into Israel through the Kerem Shalom crossing and raided a fuel terminal in Nahal Oz, which was being used to deliver fuel to Gaza. Two Israeli civilian workers were killed in the attack and two others wounded. Three of the Hamas fighters were killed and one wounded by Israeli military strikes as they attempted to escape into Gaza. Shortly afterward, the Israeli Air Force launched a series of airstrikes on Northern Gaza, killing three Palestinians. That same day, an IDF unit from the Golani Brigade's Egoz Reconnaissance Unit was searching for militant infrastructure near the Kissufim Crossing, and were ambushed by Hamas fighters, who attacked them with gunfire and anti-tank missiles. The IDF soldiers returned fire. One IDF soldier was killed and two were lightly wounded. One Hamas operative was also killed and at least four were wounded.[26]
On April 16, Israeli forces supported by tanks, armored vehicles, and helicopters entered Gaza from the east in retaliation to the April 9 raid. Four Hamas fighters and two Israeli soldiers were killed, and three Israeli soldiers were wounded after Hamas fighters ambushed the Israeli troops. Numerous civilians died during the fighting, including a cameraman employed by Reuters.
On April 19, Hamas launched an attack against the Kerem Shalom crossing on the Israel-Gaza border, which was being used to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza. The attack began in the early morning under the cover of fog, when three cars carrying explosives, including two disguised as IDF vehicles approached the crossing as mortars and rockets were fired at Southern Israel, and small arms fired at troops in the area. A Hamas armored personnel carrier confiscated from Palestinian Authority security forces managed to knock a hole through the fence, allowing two vehicle bombs to enter. The first vehicle detonated, after which all of the soldiers managed to get into armored cars before the second vehicle was detonated. Thirteen soldiers were wounded in the attack. The soldiers then chased the APC, which hit a concrete wall several hundred meters in Israeli territory, and killed its crew of three. At the same time, an IDF tank fired at another Hamas armored vehicle approaching the border near the Kissufim Crossing, killing the driver. The Israeli Air Force responded with airstrikes. Nine Palestinians, including six Hamas operatives, were killed.[27]
On November 4, 2008, Israel carried out a minimal incursion into the Gaza Strip to destroy what Israel claimed was a tunnel being dug by militants to infiltrate into Israel and kidnap soldiers. Israeli infantry, tanks, and armored bulldozers crossed 250 meters into Gazan territory to destroy the tunnel. After Palestinian militants were alerted to the presence of the forces, a gunfight broke out, during which one Hamas fighter was killed. Hamas fighters launched a mortar and rocket barrage against the Israelis. Three Israeli precision airstrikes on Hamas mortar and rocket positions were conducted, killing five Hamas fighters. Three Israeli soldiers were also injured during the operation. According to eyewitnesses, another three Hamas fighters were wounded by an Israeli UAV strike over the el-Burejj refugee camp. Hamas responded to the attack by firing 35 Qassam rockets and mortar shells into the Negev.[28] Palestinian rocket attacks against Israel sharply increased throughout November 2008, approaching pre-truce levels. In the period between the November 4 incident and mid-December, over 200 rockets and mortar shells hit Southern Israel. Clashes also erupted along the border, during which 11 Palestinian militants were killed.[29] On December 24, 2008, following the official expiration of the truce on December 19, 2008, Hamas fired a fresh barrage of rockets into Israel.[30][31][32][33] The barrage of more than 60 mortar shells and Qassam and Katyusha rockets from Gaza, reaching as far north as Ashkelon and as far south as Kerem Shalom, further into Israeli territory than ever before, killed one person and caused widespread panic due to the rockets' extensive ranges.[34][35][36][37] Immediately following the attacks, Israel warned Hamas of intense retaliation if the attacks continued,[38] and on December 27, with no end to the attacks, Israel launched its counteroffensive on 11:30 AM (IST),[39] with airstrikes in Gaza, killing at least 195 and wounded around 350.[40] About 140 of the dead were Hamas militants, according to the Israeli army.[41] Israeli planes targeted Hamas security and training compounds, as well as weapon storage buildings,[36][42] and dropped more than 100 tons of bombs.[41] Hamas responded to the Israeli strike by launching 30 rockets, and threatening a renewal of suicide bombing attacks against Israel in a "Third Intifada". Egypt condemned the Israeli attacks and opened up the Rafah Border Crossing to allow the wounded into Egyptian hospitals.[43] Egypt also deployed 500 anti-riot police along the border.[40] Syria also condemned the acts, calling them a "heinous crime and convicted terrorist act."[44] On the other hand, the United States condemned Hamas, saying that "Hamas' continued rocket attacks into Israel must cease if the violence is to stop," but also urging "Israel to avoid civilian casualties as it targets Hamas in Gaza." On January 3, 2009, IDF leadership began dropping leaflets into the Gaza Strip via airplane advising residents to leave "for their own safety" while continuing to amass tanks and ground forces near the border. The Israeli offensive, known as Operation Cast Lead, continued into 2009.
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