The current Israeli assault on Gaza is reminiscent of the first days of the horrific three-week offensive against Palestinian civilians almost four years ago. In Operation Cast Lead, Israel carried out 22 days of murder and mayhem, killing 1,400 and leaving 5,400 civilians crippled for life, as opposed to 13 Israeli deaths (four from friendly fire). Israel's actions then were deemed war crimes by the UN Goldstone Report. Since then it has continued to besiege the 1.5 million Gazans, causing hundreds more unnecessary deaths. The death toll at last count was 19 Palestinians, including five children. The biggest fear is that a ground invasion might be growing near. As the situation stands, Israeli troops, tanks and armored personnel carriers are massing near the Palestinian territory. The Israeli government has approved the mobilization of up to 30,000 reservists for a possible invasion. Also raising the stakes in this showdown between Israel and the Palestinians were the two rockets fired from the Gaza Strip to Tel Aviv on Thursday in the first attack on Israel's commercial capital since the 1991 Gulf War. That could be the signal for an all-out war. The rocket fire and air raid sirens sowed panic in Tel Aviv which used to have it easy. Israel maintained overwhelming force which meant it did not have to attack. If it did attack, it had the ability to score fast knockout victories or retaliate with a convincing strike. Israel likes its wars short and it used to be that way. It meant it did not need to call up reserves, and it obviated the need to confront angry world public opinion. In Cast Lead the Israeli army tried to restore the luster dimmed by its defeats in Lebanon by blasting Gaza to smithereens. That onslaught still reverberates, like an aftershock. And it might be happening again. But regional alignments have changed dramatically since the last Gaza war. Hamas' mother ship, the Muslim Brotherhood, has risen to power in several countries in the wake of last year's Arab uprisings, particularly in Egypt. Egypt recalled its ambassador to protest the Israeli offensive and sent its prime minister to Gaza in a show of support for Hamas. Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi's predecessor Hosni Mubarak twice withdrew his ambassador, with no permanent damage. But Israel will be watching for signs of a more aggressive approach by the Islamist leader that could jeopardize relations. In the last Gaza war, Israel devastated large areas of the territory, setting back Hamas' fighting capabilities but also paying the price of increasing diplomatic isolation because of a civilian death toll that was completely disproportionate to the conflict. Israel remains largely unpunished, hiding behind its US lobbyists who put unremitting pressure on every single US congressman, senator and president to prevent any condemnation of its crimes. But its attempt to cow the Palestinians has failed. What Israel has succeeding in doing is to confirm beyond a doubt, for millions around the world, its inhuman, racist agenda. This latest operation is the second horror film in the apparently ongoing series in this genre. Israel is proving that it learned nothing from the first movie.
