Jerusalem officials are voicing concern over the possibility that tensions on Israel’s southern front with the Gaza Strip may escalate in the near future.
Hamas is reportedly scaling back operations aimed at preventing terror-related activities against Israel, despite ongoing Egyptian mediated-attempts to reach a long-lasting truce between Jerusalem and Islamist organizations in Gaza. According to the presiding Israeli intelligence assessment, ‘while there is no apparent change in Hamas’s position pertaining to its decision to avoid aggravating the situation with the Jewish State, tensions are likely to persist in the form of indiscriminate rocket fire from the Palestinian enclave toward Israel’s southern communities.’
One Israeli intelligence source, who spoke to TV7 on condition of anonymity, said ‘Hamas has limited hostilities directed at Israel over the past two months, purely out of selfish reasons.’ He explained that while the Islamist group maintains its Jihadist aspiration to annihilate the Jewish State, it comprehends that it would not survive another widescale conflict with the Israeli Defense Forces.’ He added that the perception of Jerusalem’s enemies that its current political instability reflects ‘a lack of operational resolve’ has apparently restricted Hamas’s will to take meaningful action to obstruct rogue terror factions in the Palestinian enclave from sporadically launching rockets and other incendiary devices at Israel.
The Islamist-Hamas rulers of Gaza did not immediately respond to TV7’s request for comment.
In related developments, the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit informed TV7 that an Israeli Air Force “attack’ helicopter struck an installation “used for underground activities of the Hamas terror organization, in the northern Gaza Strip,” in response to four separate incidents in which ‘explosive balloons were launched from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory.’ Three of the weaponized-balloons were safely defused, and the fourth exploded in an uninhabited area in the Sdot Negev Regional Council. No injuries or damage were reported in the airborne attacks.