IDF gearing up for wider Gaza operation

IDF said to anticipate several days of escalated conflict.

By David Hellerman, World Israel News

The IDF is preparing for the possibility that its closure of a Gaza pedestrian crossing will not curb rocket fire and is preparing for an escalation, Channel 12 reported on Saturday night.

According to the report, the IDF anticipates escalation for several days.

An unspecified projectile fired at Israel on Saturday morning landed harmlessly in an open area. Two other Palestinian rockets fired on Friday landed in the Strip.

None of the Palestinian terror groups claimed responsibility for the launches

Israel temporarily closed the Erez crossing on Thursday for the last day of Passover and Shabbat. A statement issued by the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the military liason with the Palestinians, said the crossing would remain closed to Palestinian laborers on Sunday.

“The re-opening of the crossing will be decided in accordance with a security situational assessment,” the statement said.

Palestinian violence has spiked in recent weeks coinciding with the Islamic month of Ramadan. According to a Dutch study cited by the Jerusalem Post, “Ramadan brought with it a 200% increase in terrorist attacks in Israel between 2005 and 2016.”