"Israeli" army planning Gaza `buffer zone`, increase attacks that include civilians

Source: AP, 8-5-2007
JERUSALEM (AL-QUDS) -"Israel`s" army has developed a plan for creating a "buffer zone" of about 300 yards inside the fence around the Gaza Strip in an effort to stop Palestinian rocket fire, military officials said Tuesday.
The plan is one of several options "Israel" is considering to counter the rocket fire, which has increased since the weekend and injured one person on Monday. The attacks continued Tuesday, with one rocket fired but no one injured.
Military commanders have presented the plan to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert`s Cabinet but it has not yet been approved, the officials said on condition of anonymity since they were not authorized to discuss the plan with the media. A forum of senior ministers will debate the various plans next week, the Haaretz newspaper reported Tuesday.
"Israel" withdrew from Gaza in September 2005, ending a 38-year military occupation. "Israeli" forces currently enter the fringes of the Gaza Strip occasionally in an effort to stop the rocket launchings. But the plan calls for a greater presence that would in some places be constant, the officials said.
The plan also calls for an increase in attacks on rocket launchers, including airstrikes on high-ranking militants who oversee the firings, the officials said.
Olmert has already agreed to slightly expand the area in the Gaza Strip in which the army can operate, Haaretz said.
Senior military officials have been pushing for approval of a large land offensive in the Gaza Strip to stop the rocket fire, but other security chiefs are opposed to such a complicated operation in the densely-populated coastal area that would surely exact many "Israeli" troop casualties.
To minimize "Israeli" injuries, the army plan for such an operation includes the use of heavy fire that usually results in civilian casualties, Haaretz said.