Skip to content
Deacon Keith Fournier Hi readers, it seems you use Catholic Online a lot; that's great! It's a little awkward to ask, but we need your help. If you have already donated, we sincerely thank you. We're not salespeople, but we depend on donations averaging $14.76 and fewer than 1% of readers give. If you donate just $5.00, the price of your coffee, Catholic Online School could keep thriving. Thank you. Help Now >

Israel prepares for war as rockets rain down

Free World Class Education
FREE Catholic Classes
Israel may be preparing to invade Gaza.

Israel is calling up reserve troops as Hamas continues firing rockets out of Gaza and into Israeli cities. The prospect of a full-scale war with Hamas, and possibly Egypt, looms.

Highlights

By Catholic Online (NEWS CONSORTIUM)
Catholic Online (https://www.catholic.org)
11/16/2012 (1 decade ago)

Published in Middle East

Keywords: Israel, Gaza, Palestine, Palestinian, Egypt

TEL AVIV, ISRAEL (Catholic Online) - Israel has activated at least some 16,000 reserve troops which have been seen in armored personnel carriers and busses headed south toward the Gaza strip. In both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, air raid sirens have called residents into underground shelters.

Overhead, an unrelenting barrage of rockets fired by Hamas rains down with indiscriminate fury. So far, the missiles have killed no Israelis. Most rockets have either missed populated areas altogether or have been intercepted by the military.

Hamas claims they are retaliating for the assassination of their defense minister, as well as the continual strikes by the Israeli Air Force against some 450 targets in Gaza. Those strikes have killed several people including a pregnant woman.

An uneasy truce was declared for a few hours of Wednesday as Egyptian Prime Minister Hesham Kandil made a short visit to the region. Kandil offered Egyptian support to the Palestinians saying, "Palestine is the heart of the Arab and Muslim world and the body is not healthy while the heart is sick."

Violence resumed during the Prime Minister's visit as the two sides accused the other of breaking the truce.

So far, both sides have waged an intense mutual bombardment, however Israel may be preparing a ground offensive. Navy ships are just offshore from the Gaza strip and troops are massed along the region's borders. It is unclear if the operation dubbed, "Pillar of Defense" by the Israelis, will include an invasion, or if it is merely designed to increase the pressure on Hamas.

Hamas is believed to have an estimated 12,000 missiles at its disposal including some advanced models of Libyan and Iranian origin. Hamas may deploy these missiles at any moment.

Despite the apparent coming of war, Prime Minister Netanyahu has made it known that he prefers peace, especially with Egypt.

Despite their stated support for the Palestinians, it is unlikely the Egyptians can mount much of an attack on Israel either. Not only does their army lack technical capabilities, but the military remains in disarray after the shakeups of the past year-and-a-half.

Israel may call up to another 14,000 reservists in the days to come, should the situation escalate further.

---


'Help Give every Student and Teacher FREE resources for a world-class Moral Catholic Education'


Copyright 2021 - Distributed by Catholic Online

Light Your Free Payer Candle for a departed loved one

What is Palm Sunday?

Live on March 20, 2024 @ 10am PDT

Join the Movement
When you sign up below, you don't just join an email list - you're joining an entire movement for Free world class Catholic education.

Lent logo
Saint of the Day logo

We ask you, humbly: don't scroll away.

Hi readers, it seems you use Catholic Online a lot; that's great! It's a little awkward to ask, but we need your help. If you have already donated, we sincerely thank you. We're not salespeople, but we depend on donations averaging $14.76 and fewer than 1% of readers give. If you donate just $5.00, the price of your coffee, Catholic Online School could keep thriving. Thank you.

Help Now >

Catholic Online Logo

Copyright 2024 Catholic Online. All materials contained on this site, whether written, audible or visual are the exclusive property of Catholic Online and are protected under U.S. and International copyright laws, © Copyright 2024 Catholic Online. Any unauthorized use, without prior written consent of Catholic Online is strictly forbidden and prohibited.

Catholic Online is a Project of Your Catholic Voice Foundation, a Not-for-Profit Corporation. Your Catholic Voice Foundation has been granted a recognition of tax exemption under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Federal Tax Identification Number: 81-0596847. Your gift is tax-deductible as allowed by law.