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Operation Cast Lead

Day 20 - Thursday 15 January 2009

Israeli forces have encircled Gaza City for days now, making forays into central areas. But, residents now report Israeli forces pushing ever deeper into the city. "It was one of the worst nights that we've been in in Gaza city," said Palestinian journalist Mohammed Dawwas, who was reporting for VOA. "It was bombardment all night long and in the morning it increased. I can see everything from my house - smoke, bombardment - it's very close to where we live, maybe a half a kilometer away." Fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas militants is reported in the Tel Hawwas neighborhood of southern Gaza city and many residents are reported to have fled their homes.

Approximately 35 armed terror operatives were targeted by aerial strikes directed by IDF Ground Forces, on Wednesday night (Jan. 14). Fire was opened at Engineering Corps forces from a building east of Gaza City. The forces responded with fire and hit the terrorist who had fired at them. The IAF attacked approximately 70 terrorist sites throughout the Gaza Strip, including a mosque in Rafah used as a rocket storage facility and a meeting place for senior Hamas operatives responsible for rocket launching, 14 groups of armed terror operatives, five weapon storage facilities located in houses of Hamas operatives, 14 rocket launching sites and a smuggling tunnel located under the house of a Hamas operative. The Israel Navy supported the Ground Forces throughout the night and attacked additional Hamas targets. The Israel Navy also continued to enforce the naval closure of the Gaza Strip.

At least 11 IDF soldiers were lightly injured during the operations Wednesday night. On Wednesday afternoon (Jan. 14), an IDF soldier was severely wounded, another soldier was moderately wounded and five other soldiers were lightly injured when an anti-tank missile was fired at the forces in the northern Gaza Strip. The wounded soldiers were evacuated to hospital to receive medical treatment. Their families have been notified.

Earlier during the day, Paratrooper Brigade forces hit a terror operative who was approaching to attack them. While searching a building in the northern Gaza Strip, the forces identified a suicide bomber armed with a weapon and an explosive belt. The forces opened fire at him, which caused the explosive belt on his person to detonate.

In addition, Combat Engineering Corps forces, in a joint operation with Armored Corps forces, uncovered a stockpile of 20 rockets inside a house in Gaza City. The rockets were detonated in a controlled matter. In another incident, an armed terror operative was identified in close proximity to Armored Corps forces. The forces fired at him and identified hitting the terrorist. Ground forces identified armed terror operatives in a number of additional incidents, and assisted in directing aerial strikes on them.

At about 14:00, the IAF hit a rocket launcher just after that launcher fired a rocket at Beersheba. The IAF targeted approximately 20 targets between Wednesday morning and Wednesday afternoon (Jan. 14), among them 3 weapons smuggling tunnels, 9 rockets launching sites - some of them located underground and some of them loaded and ready for firing at Israeli territory - a number of armed terror operatives, 5 weaponry storage facilities. A number of aerial strikes were also carried out with the assistance of ground forces who directed the IAF after they identified operatives preparing to fire.

Police say three rockets were fired from Lebanon into northern Israel on Wednesday, landing outside the town of Kiryat Shmona. There were no reports of casualties, and no claim of responsibility. The Lebanese government denounced the rocket fire. It was the second such attack in less than a week. Officials say Israel fired shells into Lebanon in response.

Israeli police said militants fired a phosphorus shell from Gaza into Israel.

The success of the IDF thus far in Operation Cast Lead is largely due to the cooperation between different parts of the army-such as various brigades and units. Thanks to the use of UAVs, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, the IDF has been attaining footage captured from the air, above the Gaza Strip, and collecting data for the ground forces in Gaza.

Since the ground forces have entered the Gaza Strip, Sgt. Leiberman has been operating a UAV team in a combined force with the Givati Brigade, and is stationed in the operations room of the brigade. "We sit here with all of the authorities and receive assignments directly from them," he says. In addition to operating the UAVs from the operations room, the reconnaissance division of the Givati Brigade, located in the Gaza Strip, is able to see the video footage from the UAV through a screen instantaneously. "We are talking to them and guiding them directly," says Sgt. Leiberman. He explains that the most important task is accompanying the ground forces in the territory. "When the forces enter and cross the border, the UAV flies 500 meters in front of them, clearing the area. We guide them and give them advice regarding a safe point of entrance, what is risky and what is not." Additionally, the UAV team collects intelligence information. A new task that has recently been implemented is the management of coordination and communication, which includes monitoring humanitarian efforts during the hours of a ceasefire. "If wounded people are being evacuated, we escort them and check that everything is okay; if they ask how many blockades there are on the route that they're taking to seek medical care, we give them a response within a few minutes."

The UAV team works with a number of authorities in the operations room and it knows its tasks and combat procedures quite well. "The launching and landing occur here, everything takes place here," says Sgt. Leiberman, "We launch, we fly, we even take care of any technical problems." He explains that the biggest advantage here is that they are operating the UAVs from the operations room alongside the Givati Brigade. "Here, the moment we see a force moving towards our forces, we immediately involve all the authorities that are conveniently beside us at all times. It's a matter of seconds. We are vital to the missions and very connected to our soldiers." Another benefit of the UAV is the ease with which it operates. "It runs on batteries that are recharged from here, the video footage is in color and it also captures thermal images," explains Sgt. Leiberman. In addition, there are military intelligence office that are helping to interpret the images.

"Overall, it is quite calm here in this area as compared to the others," says Sgt. Leiberman, "It is good that the forces aren't encountering too much, and. I am happy to be accompanying our forces." The team has been stationed in the operations room with the Givati Brigade for two weeks, and Sgt. Leiberman says, "We are satisfied with the soldiers of Givati as they are with us. The group is content."

15 January 2009 - Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said today he believed the elements for an end to the violence in Gaza, which has claimed over 1,000 lives and is now in its 20th day, are in place, even as he expressed "outrage" over the latest shelling of United Nations premises in the Strip. "Today, the UN compound in Gaza has been shelled again," Mr. Ban told a news conference with Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni. "I conveyed my strong protest and outrage to the Defense Minister and to the Foreign Minister, and demanded a full explanation."

Following a visit of the Joint Humanitarian Coordination Center (JHCC) to the IDF Southern Command, it was decided to extend the humanitarian pause in the fighting for an additional hour as of today (15 Jan.), to take place on a daily basis. Members of the JHCC visited the Kerem Shalom cargo terminal and met with military commanders in the field. They also viewed the special humanitarian command post set up at a military base in the vicinity to coordinate medical movement and attend to the needs of the international organizations.

The JHCC was established by COGAT and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in order to provide a high level "hot line" point of contact for the international organizations who are members of the JHCC. The JHCC serves as an integrative value-added coordinating body for all humanitarian efforts to the Gaza Strip.

Among the priorities of the humanitarian coordination is the transfer of goods into Gaza, the repairs of electrical grid and sewage systems, evacuation of wounded, coordination of medical assistance and evacuation of foreign and dual nationals. The electrical supply is also being rehabilitated, the grid has been repaired and electricity is at 74% capacity up from 40% earlier in the operation. Rehabilitation of the power network is a direct result of the coordination between the IDF, the Palestinian Energy Authority and the International Committee of the Red Cross.

The IDF intends to open all crossing points as soon as possible to enable maximum flow of goods, fuels and medical supplies and there are plans to increase the capacity of the crossings. Indeed today, the Karni conveyer belt is operating, operations of Karni and Nahal Oz were disrupted due to a terrorist tunnel that targeted the crossings. The JHCC visitors learned that often problems are caused due to lack of organization on the part of Palestinian contractors. For example, for three days the IDF suspended operations in order to enable an ICRC convoy to escort Palestinian technicians to repair the pump of the Beit Lahiya sewage facility. For the first two days the technicians didn't arrive and today when they did arrive they didn't have the proper vehicles and implements to carry out the task.

Since the beginning of the operation a total of 1,136 trucks of produce have entered the Gaza Strip with over 26,000 tons of goods. In addition, fuel trucks and medical personnel have entered as well.

Hamas says it does not reject the broad outlines of an Egyptian-brokered truce plan for Gaza, but has stopped short of accepting the plan. The Hamas position was put forward Wednesday by an official of the group, Salah al-Bardawil, who spoke after talks in Cairo. He said Hamas had given Egyptian mediators its views, and would now wait for Israel's response. Egyptian officials say their plan involves both a temporary and long-term truce, an opening of Gaza's border crossings and a withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territory. It would also call for the dispatch of international monitors to Gaza.

The violence according to Palestinian health ministry officials has claimed over 1,000 lives and wound some 4,500, including large numbers of women and children. The head of the United Nations children's agency, Ann Venemen said Wednesday that 300 children were among the dead. She said 1,500 others have been wounded.