,
An Israeli cabinet minister has raised the possibility of deploying an multinational force in the Gaza Strip to prevent persistent Palestinian rocket attacks on the Jewish state.
“For the moment there is no military solution to the Qassam (rocket) fire problem on Israel from the Gaza Strip and therefore the deployment of a multinational force needs to be considered,” minister without portfolio Yitzhak Cohen, from the ultra-Orthodox Shas party, told public radio on Monday.
“This model has worked in Lebanon… We went to war this summer in Lebanon and an average of 180 Katyusha rockets were fired against our territory every day. That stopped only thanks to (UN) Resolution 1701,” he added.
The Security Council resolution ushered in an August 14 ceasefire ending the 34-day conflict between Israel and Shiite militia Hezbollah and saw the deployment of a multinational UN peacekeeping force in Lebanon.
Palestinian militants on Monday fired seven rockets into Israel from the Gaza Strip, which caused no casualties or damage, a military source said.
Last Wednesday, a mother-of-two was killed in one such rocket attack, the first such deadly strike in more than a year and the first since Israel withdrew all troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip in 2005.
“The Tsahal (Israeli army) is a strong army which should deal with strategic threats and not Qassam rocket fire. It would be better if Israel initiated this idea,” Cohen added, referring to the international force.
Pensioner Affairs Minister Rafi Eitan also said on the radio that Israel should try to reach a truce with Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
“We don't want to dominate another people and we left the Gaza Strip… We need to make a ceasefire agreement and need to see if Abu Mazen (Abbas) is capable of implementing it,” he said.
But former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, head of the opposition Likud party, called for another strike against Gaza to halt the missile attacks.
“I recommend a massive military operation against the northern Gaza Strip to halt these rocket attacks, and another against the southern region to block contraband weapons coming in from Egypt,” he told public radio.
“It is very difficult to live with this constant menace of rockets and we must do something,” he added.
