Wetherhorn

Yesterday listening to the report of the IDF spokesman was a morale boosting experience. He did not give details of the operation, but simply reported the results. A force of from various units, mostly the elite, succeeded in rescuing one female soldier from Hamas captivity. Only one from a total of over 200 isn’t a statistic of great importance by itself. But the influence of that report is hard to overstate. I was reminded of the rescue of the hostages in Entebbe. A daring military operation that is so fantastic that it makes you think it comes from some fictional story. I know the details were kept under wraps in the hope that there may be more such actions.

While the rescue was the most important item, there were other stories that also needed to be told. Two other missing Israelis were identified as dead. One had appeared in a Hamas film clip. She was lying, immobile, in the back of a pick-up truck headed into Gaza. Her death was confirmed by the graves registration team that found a piece of bone from the base of her skull and other team members were able to positively identify it using DNA. I salute the people who carry out that work in order to give closure to the families.

 The IDF is in the process of rewriting the tactical book on urban warfare. All the experts on TV have been talking about how difficult it is and how high the casualty costs are likely to be. But, without disclosing anything that hasn’t already been cleared by IDF censors, I can say this. Israel has total command of the air. Ground troops are able to approach buildings, both shattered and intact, where Hamas terrorists are located. When they come under fire from the terrorists, the IDF troops identify the source, take pictures, and transmit the data back to Air Force command. The intelligence people pull up all the information and verify, as best they can, that no civilians are present. Then the location is targeted and coordinates sent to attack units that are already in the air near the location. Precision guided munitions are employed and the IDF soldiers can then move in occupy the remaining wreckage. The whole process takes only a very short time. The advance is slow, but the IDF is not taking prohibitive casualties. The whole process was explained by a military affairs reporter on an Israeli TV station. He also prefaced his remarks with a security censor disclaimer.

Hamas is still trying to draw out release negotiations for the remaining captive hostages. If their tactics are successful, international pressure might force Israel to accept a cease-fire before Hamas is totally defeated. Their most important tool, so far, has been the “humanitarian crisis” that shows up on the media with boring regularity. The people reporting from inside Gaza are, of course, telling us only what Hamas wants us to hear. But look at the pictures. There are many frames with children walking around. Are they really starving? Compare them to the Sudanese refugees in Chad where the children ARE suffering from malnutrition to the extent that you can see their ribs protruding. It’s clear that the Palestinians in Gaza are oppressed, but Hamas is the oppressor.