The Israel Defense Forces plans to step up its activities in
the Gaza Strip, including sending in forces for short-term
operations and stepping up assassinations of senior Hamas and
Islamic Jihad officials in the Strip, according to a report
in Ha'aretz. This is in contrast to the West Bank
where the IDF is cutting down its presence mainly due to
budget reductions.
The decision to increase operations in Gaza were made on
Sunday at the highest political and defense levels, in the
wake of the suicide bombing in Jerusalem. The Shin Bet is
attributing the Sunday bombing to Hamas, even though the
bomber was a member of Fatah, whose military wing claimed
credit for the attack.
The military force in the West Bank was reduced by some 25
percent over the past six months and the IDF is now planning
an additional reduction.
The increased pressure in Gaza may be a form of preparation
for the withdrawal plan of prime minister Ariel Sharon, which
may take place as early as the end of this year. Some senior
IDF officers are reportedly arguing that Israel should do in
Gaza what it did not do in Lebanon before withdrawing in May
2004 -- deliver a heavy blow to the terror groups operating
in Gaza before pulling-out.
The forces in the West Bank reached a record high this past
October, when four reserve battalions received emergency
orders to reinforce the four battalions already deployed
along the seam line. This decision was made by Defense
Minister Shaul Mofaz following the suicide bombing in Haifa's
Maxim restaurant that left 21 Israeli citizens dead.
Since then, the forces have been gradually reduced, and only
four reserve battalions remain permanently deployed in the
West Bank. Reserve battalions are also called to replace
regular battalions going on vacation, reorganization and
training sessions. Now the IDF has decided to remove two more
reserve battalions from the West Bank deployment. The
immediate reason given was budgetary constraints. Reducing
the West Bank force by two more reserve battalions is
estimated to save NIS 60 to 70 million.
Even with the reductions, the IDF will have difficulty
fulfilling its declared objective of calling up only half of
the reserve battalions for operational duty this year. In
2003, only 8 percent of the reserve battalions were exempt
from such duty. At best, military planners said, only about a
third of the reserve soldiers will not be called up.
