By: Yaakov Lappin – Jewish News Syndicate; jns.org
As the current firepower of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad demonstrates, Gaza’s factions have not been resting on their laurels in recent years, exploiting a period of quiet to create a domestic industry of weapons production.
Almost the minute Israel fully withdrew from the Gaza Strip in September 2005, the area became a hotbed of terror. Some 18 months later, after Hamas seized the territory in a violent coup from its internal Palestinian rival, Fatah, the Islamist-ruled enclave had turned into a heavily armed fortress, which hosts a terrorist army that is funded and assisted by Iran.
On Thursday night local time, the Israel Defense Forces announced on Twitter that “air and ground” troops were striking targets in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Hamas “will pay a heavy price” for its barrage of rockets on the Jewish state, nearly 2,000 and counting.
https://www.jns.org/what-are-israels-options-on-how-to-confront-palestinian-terror-groups-in-gaza/