Submitted by Richard Clark, Jun 19, 2007 20:17

said that the Israelis already know that Hamas has constructed extensive tunnels and fortifications in Gaza, probably has antitank and antiaircraft missiles now, and has received training from Iran. It would be very like Ohlmert to try to redeem himself from last year's repulse and strategic defeat by an assault on Gaza. They won't wait for Hamas to fire rockets or anything of that nature that to launch their ground assault, they'll just bloody launch it when they think their ground force is ready, perhaps in a month. They have been taken by surprise by all this - this debacle wasn't supposed to happen, Abbas was supposed to prevail with all the Israeli and CIA help. The IDF will have a lot riding on this attack; they've been kicked out of Lebanon twice now, and they don't want the third strike; but they are going to have to attack, soon. There's no real reason why they should do any better on the ground against Hamas than they did against Hezbollah, which was a pretty sorry showing for them, a real arse-whipping as a matter of fact. When they launch their assault, the Muslims in the north are sure to open up with long-range missiles on Haifa, maybe even Tel Aviv, and they don't have enough soldiers to assault both the north and the south, and hold off a simultaneous rising in the West Bank. They might get another Pyrrhic victory, though. They're a second, maybe third generation force surrounded on three sides by Fourth Generation forces. The United States government has no way to help them in the long run, and doesn't have enough soldiers left itself to do the fighting for them. Sic transit Stupor Mundi....... should be a good show on teevee later this summer....

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