View source for Gaza War (2008–2009)

{{For|other conflicts called the "Gaza War"|2012 Gaza War|2014 Gaza War|Israel–Hamas war}}{{Short description|Armed conflict between Israel and Palestinian militant groups in the Gaza Strip}}
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{{use Oxford spelling|date=May 2021}}
{{Infobox military conflict
| conflict          = Gaza War
| partof            = the [[Gaza–Israel conflict]]
| image             = Cast lead map.png
| image_size        = 300px
| caption           = Israeli advances in Gaza during 2009
| date              = 27 December 2008 – 18 January 2009<br />({{Age in years, months, weeks and days|month1=12|day1=27|year1=2008|month2=01|day2=18|year2=2009}})
| place             = [[Gaza Strip]] and [[Southern District (Israel)|Southern Israel]]
| result            = Israeli military victory<ref name='Aviation Week 2009-05-11'/><ref name="jpost.com"/><ref name="nytimes.com"/><ref name="Victorious, but vilified: Israel has 'destroyed its image and its soul'"/>
* IDF declared [[unilateral]] ceasefire, 12 hours later Hamas announced a [[Tahdiya|one-week ceasefire]].<ref name="xinhua one week" /><ref name="cbc.ca one week" />
* [[Effects of the Gaza War#Gaza humanitarian crisis|Humanitarian crisis]] and deterioration of infrastructure and basic services in Gaza.<ref name="ocha_report_1_2">{{Cite news |title=Gaza Humanitarian Situation Report – January 2, 2009 as of 14:30 |date=2009-01-02 |publisher=[[United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_gaza_situation_report_2009_01_02_english.pdf |access-date=2009-01-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114195338/http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_gaza_situation_report_2009_01_02_english.pdf |archive-date=14 January 2009 }}</ref>
* Temporary reduction in the number of [[List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, 2009|rockets]] being fired from the Gaza Strip.
* [[Gaza War (2008–09)#Aftermath|See results]]
| combatant1        = {{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Israel]]
* [[Israel Defense Forces]]
* [[Israel Security Agency]]
| combatant2        = {{flag|Gaza Strip}}<ref name=Bauer0123/>
* {{flag|Hamas}}
** [[Ezzedeen al-Qassam Brigades]]
* {{flag|Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine}}
** [[Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades]]
* {{flag|Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine}}
** [[Al-Quds Brigades]]
* [[Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades |Al-Aqsa Martyrs']]
* [[Popular Resistance Committees]]
| commander1        = {{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Ehud Olmert]]<br />[[Prime Minister of Israel|Prime Minister]]<br />
{{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Ehud Barak]]<br />[[Defense Minister of Israel|Minister of Defense]]<br />
{{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Gabi Ashkenazi]]<br />[[Chief of General Staff (Israel)|Chief of General Staff]]<br />
{{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Yoav Galant]]<br />[[Southern Command (Israel)|Southern Command]]<br />
{{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Ido Nehoshtan]]<br />[[Israeli Air Force|Air Force]]<br />
{{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Eli Marom]]<br />[[Israeli Navy|Navy]]<br />
{{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Eyal Eisenberg]]<br />[[Gaza Division]]<br />
{{Flagicon|Israel}} [[Yuval Diskin]]<br />[[Shin Bet|Internal Security Service]]
| commander2        = {{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Khaled Mashal]]<ref name="Hamas Leader Khaled Mashaal">{{Cite news |last=Altman |first=Alex |url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1869481,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206181015/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1869481,00.html |archive-date=6 February 2009 |title=Hamas Leader Khaled Mashaal |magazine=Time |date=2009-01-04 |access-date=2010-06-05}}</ref><br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Ismail Haniyeh]]<br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Said Seyam]]{{KIA}}<br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Mohammed Deif]]<br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Abu Zakaria al-Jamal]]{{KIA}}<br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Ahmed Jabari]]<br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Tawfik Jaber]]{{KIA}}<ref name="Israel bombs Gaza for seventh day after killing Hamas leader">{{Cite news |last=Butcher |first=Tim |author-link=Tim Butcher |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4071272/Israel-bombs-Gaza-for-seventh-day-after-killing-Hamas-leader.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4071272/Israel-bombs-Gaza-for-seventh-day-after-killing-Hamas-leader.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Israel bombs Gaza for seventh day after killing Hamas leader |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=2009-01-02 |access-date=2010-06-05 |location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref><br />{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Osama Mazini]]<br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Nizar Rayan]]{{KIA}}<ref name="Israel bombs Gaza for seventh day after killing Hamas leader"/><br />
{{flagicon image|Flag of Hamas.svg}} [[Mahmoud al-Zahar]]<br />{{flagicon image|}} [[Ramadan Abdullah Mohammad Shallah|Ramadan Shallah]]<br />{{flagicon|PFLP}} [[Jamil Mezher]]
| strength1         = IDF: 4,000<ref name="Israel vows no let-up over Gaza">{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7811301.stm |title=Israel vows no let-up over Gaza |date=2009-01-05 |work=BBC News |access-date=4 May 2010}}</ref>–20,000<ref>{{Cite news |title=Israeli troops enter Gaza |url=https://www.smh.com.au/news/world/israeli-troops-enter-gaza/2009/01/04/1231003816897.html |author=Jason Koutsoukis |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=2009-01-04}}</ref> deployed in ground invasion and tens of thousands of reservists mobilized<ref>{{Cite news |title=Israel reinforces army before 'third phase' of war in Gaza |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5497710.ece |date=2009-01-12 |author=Fletcher, Martin |work=The Times |access-date=2010-05-17 |location=London}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{subscription required}}</ref> (176,000 total active personnel)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.inss.org.il/upload/%28FILE%291245235226.pdf |title=Institute for National Security Studies |access-date=2010-06-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100331011719/http://www.inss.org.il/upload/%28FILE%291245235226.pdf |archive-date=31 March 2010 }}</ref>
| strength2         = Hamas (Izzedine Al-Qassam Brigades and paramilitary police): 20,000 (est. total)<ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/israeli-think-tank-hamas-has-20-000-armed-men-in-gaza-strip-1.243671 "Israeli think tank: Hamas has 20,000 armed men in Gaza Strip"], Associated Press, ''Haaretz'', 10 April 2008</ref><ref name="t2009-01-05">{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4127074/Hamas-fighters-now-a-well-organised-force.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4127074/Hamas-fighters-now-a-well-organised-force.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Hamas fighters now a well-organised force |last=Butcher |first=Tim |date=2009-01-05 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=3 May 2010 |location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref><br />Other Palestinian paramilitary forces: 10,000<ref>{{cite news |author=Haidar Eid |url=http://www.socialistworker.org/2009/01/02/israels-war-of-terror |title=Israel's war of terror against Gaza |newspaper=Socialist Worker |date=2009-01-02 |access-date=2010-06-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615082253/http://socialistworker.org/2009/01/02/israels-war-of-terror |archive-date=15 June 2010 }}</ref>
| casualties1       = '''Total killed''': 13<br />Soldiers: 10 ([[friendly fire]]: 4)<ref name=latimes2009jan13/><br />Civilians: 3<br />
'''Total wounded''': 518<br />Soldiers: 336<ref name=ocha2009jan26>[http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_26_english.pdf "Field update on Gaza from the Humanitarian Coordinator"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205002514/http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_26_english.pdf |date=5 February 2009 }}. 24–26 January 2009. OCHA oPt ([[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs|United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] – occupied Palestinian territory). [http://www.ochaopt.org/ oachopt.org].</ref><br />Civilians: 182<ref name=ocha2009jan26/>
| casualties2       = '''Total killed''': 1,166–1,417{{refn|group=fn|1,166 according to the [[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]],{{sfn|Lappin|2009}} 1,391 according to [[B'Tselem]],{{sfn|''B'Tselem''}} and 1,417 according to the [[Palestinian Centre for Human Rights|PCHR]].{{sfn|''PCHR''|2009}}}}
Militants and police officers:<br />491'''*''' (255 police officers, 236 fighters) ([[Palestinian Centre for Human Rights|PCHR]]),{{sfn|''PCHR''|2009}}<ref>Efraim Inbar & Eitan Shamir [https://besacenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Mowing-the-Grass-English.pdf 'Mowing the Grass': Israel's Strategy for Protracted Intractable Conflict], [[Journal of Strategic Studies]], 37:1, 65–90 p. 83</ref><!--Per discussion--> 600'''*''' (B'Tselem),{{sfn|''B'Tselem''}} 709 ([[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]]),{{sfn|Lappin|2009}} 600–700 ([[Hamas]])<ref>[http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/hamas-admits-600-700-of-its-men-were-killed-in-cast-lead-1.323776 "Hamas admits 600–700 of its men were killed in Cast Lead"] (9 November 2010). ''[[Haaretz]]''. Retrieved 2 March 2011</ref> <br />Civilians: 926 ([[Palestinian Centre for Human Rights|PCHR]]),{{sfn|''PCHR''|2009}} 759 (B'Tselem),{{sfn|''B'Tselem''}} 295 ([[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]]){{sfn|Lappin|2009}}<br />
'''Total wounded''': 5,303 ([[Palestinian Centre for Human Rights|PCHR]]){{sfn|''PCHR''|2009}}
'''Total captured''': 120 ([[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]])
| casualties3       = One [[Egyptian army|Egyptian]] border guard officer killed and three wounded, and two children wounded<!--before blaming Hamas or Palestinians see Talk:2008–2009_Israel–Gaza_conflict#Infobox_blaming-->.<!--Source for one guard dead, one wounded--><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.nana10.co.il/Article/?ArticleID=605368&sid=126 |title=קצין מצרי נהרג מירי אנשי חמאס סמוך למעבר רפיח |publisher=nana 10 |language=He |trans-title=Egyptian officer killed by Hamas near the Rafah crossing |access-date=2009-01-01 |archive-date=25 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225083951/https://www.10.tv/news/36331 }}</ref><!--Source for two guards, kids wounded--><ref name="egyptian1">{{Cite news |title=Two Egyptian Children, Police Injured in Israeli Air Strike Near Gaza Border |url=http://voanews.com/english/2009-01-11-voa20.cfm |date=2009-01-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114225319/http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-01-11-voa20.cfm |archive-date=14 January 2009}}</ref><br />Over 50,800 Gaza residents displaced.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7838618.stm "Gaza 'looks like earthquake zone'"]. BBC. 19 January 2009</ref>
Over 4,000 homes destroyed; around $2bn worth of damage to Gaza<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7845428.stm |title=Gaza: Humanitarian situation |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-30 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
| notes             = '''*'''255 ([[Palestinian Centre for Human Rights|PCHR]]){{sfn|''PCHR''|2009}} or 265 (B'Tselem){{sfn|''B'Tselem''}} police officers were killed.
| campaignbox       = {{Campaignbox Gaza–Israel conflict}}
}}
<!--------END OF Infobox military conflict------>
<!--Would editors please NOT edit the lead without first getting consensus for any change at the talk page. Any changes made first without discussion maybe reverted and taken to the talk page. Please also remember that this article is under the 1 revert rule. Thank you. -->
The '''Gaza War''', also known as the '''First Gaza War''',<ref>{{cite book |last1=Sherry |first1=Robert |title=The Endless Quest for Israeli-Palestinian Peace |date=2016 |publisher=Springer |page=25}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Waxman |first1=Dov |title=The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: What Everyone Needs to Know |date=2019 |publisher=Oxford University Press |page=64}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=What to know about Hamas |url=https://www.dw.com/en/what-to-know-about-hamas/a-67029343 |work=[[Deutsche Welle]] |date=8 October 2023}}</ref> '''Operation Cast Lead''' ({{langx|he|מִבְצָע עוֹפֶרֶת יְצוּקָה}}),<ref>The operation began in the midst of celebrating the [[Jewish holiday]] of [[Hanukkah]]; the name "Cast Lead" ({{lang|he|עופרת יצוקה}}, {{IPA|he|ofeʁet jetsuka}}) is a famous phrase from Israel's [[national poet]] [[Hayim Nahman Bialik]]'s popular Hebrew children's song "Likhvod haḤanukkah" ({{lang|he|לכבוד החנוכה}}). In the song (see [[:he:לכבוד החנוכה|article]] in the [[Hebrew Wikipedia]]), the child narrator is given a [[dreidel]] made of cast lead. See [https://books.google.com/books?id=Qc-xfP6b3gsC&pg=PA42 "Operation Cast Lead"] in: {{cite book|last=Gavriely-Nuri|first=Dalia|title=The Normalization of War in Israeli Discourse, 1967–2008|date=2013|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=978-0-7391-7260-5|location=Lanham, MD|pages=42–43}}<!--|access-date=2014-07-06-->, on [[Google Books]]; Gavriely-Nuri, "30 shana leMilkhemet Levanon haRishona: mabat mekhudash" (conference), 3rd session: yitzugei Levanon vehamilkhama batarbut haYisre'elit, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem – The Leonard Davis Institute for International Relations, The Department of International Relation and The Department of Communication and Journalism, 2 May 2012, 1:05:52 ff. (lecture begins at 56:25) (Hebrew).</ref> or the '''Gaza Massacre''' ({{Langx|ar|مجزرة غزة}}),<ref>{{cite book |title=Gaza: Morality, Law & Politics|editor-last=Gaita|editor-first=Raimond|editor-link=Raimond Gaita |publisher=UWA Publishing |year=2010 |isbn=978-1-74258-096-8 |page=1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bQviYWQZGCUC&pg=PA1}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Just war on terror?: A Christian and Muslim response |last1=Fisher |first1=David |last2=Wicker |first2=Brian |publisher=Ashgate Publishing |year=2010 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rxtr6qSB2zcC&pg=PA164 |page=164|isbn=978-1-4094-0808-6 }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Bombs and ballots: governance by Islamist terrorist and guerrilla groups|author1-link=Krista E. Wiegand |last=Wiegand |first=Krista |publisher=Ashgate Publishing |year=2010 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WlDkiLkscSQC&pg=PA131 |page=131|isbn=978-0-7546-7891-5 }}</ref> and referred to as the '''Battle of al-Furqan''' ({{lang|ar|معركة الفرقان}}) by [[Hamas]],<ref name="Abdul-Hameed al-Kayyali 2009">{{cite web |url=http://www.alzaytouna.net/en/publications/books/151173-studies-on-the-israeli-aggression-on-gaza-strip-cast-lead-operation-al-furqan-battle.html |title=Studies on the Israeli Aggression on Gaza Strip: Cast Lead Operation / Al-Furqan Battle |publisher=Al-Zaytuna Center for Studies & Consultations |quote=... the Cast Lead Operation or al-Furqan Battle as named by Israel and Hamas respectively ... |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213020141/http://www.alzaytouna.net/en/publications/books/151173-studies-on-the-israeli-aggression-on-gaza-strip-cast-lead-operation-al-furqan-battle.html |archive-date=13 December 2014}} Secondary source, Abdul-Hameed al-Kayyali, ''Studies on the Israeli Aggression on Gaza Strip: Cast Lead Operation / Al-Furqan Battle'', 2009</ref><ref name="Maximilian Felsch, 2011">{{cite book |author=Maximilian Felsch |title=Die Hamas: eine pragmatische soziale Bewegung?: Eine transnationale empirische Fallanalyse der Hamas in den besetzten Gebieten, in Jordanien, im Libanon und in Syrien |language=de |trans-title=Hamas: a pragmatic social movement?: A transnational empirical case analysis of Hamas in the occupied territories, in Jordan, in Lebanon and in Syria |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=etqL8p6pwC8C&pg=PA106 |access-date=24 December 2011 |year= 2011 |publisher=Waxmann Verlag |isbn=978-3-8309-2611-5 |page=106}}</ref> was a three-week armed conflict between [[Gaza Strip]] Palestinian paramilitary groups and the [[Israel Defense Forces]] (IDF) that [[Timeline of the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict#27 December 2008|began]] on 27 December 2008 and ended on 18 January 2009 with a unilateral ceasefire. The conflict resulted in 1,166–1,417 Palestinian and 13 Israeli deaths.<ref>Al-Mughrabi, Nidal. [http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre5053r7-us-palestinians-israel/ Israel tightens grip on urban parts of Gaza] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109194300/http://www.newsdaily.com/stories/tre5053r7-us-palestinians-israel/ |date=9 January 2009 }}</ref> Over 46,000 homes were destroyed in Gaza, making more than 100,000 people homeless.{{sfn|Filiu|2014|p=318}}
A [[2008 Israel–Hamas ceasefire|six month long ceasefire between Israel and Hamas]] ended on 4 November, when the IDF made a raid into [[Deir al-Balah]], central Gaza to destroy a tunnel, killing several Hamas militants. Israel said the raid was a preemptive strike and Hamas intended to abduct further Israeli soldiers,<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite news|last=McCarthy|first=Rory|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/nov/05/israelandthepalestinians|title=Gaza truce broken as Israeli raid kills six Hamas gunmen|date=2008-11-05|work=The Guardian|access-date=2020-04-26|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}</ref> while Hamas characterized it as a ceasefire violation,<ref name=":1">{{citation|url=https://fas.org/sgp/crs/mideast/R40101.pdf|pages=6–7|title=Israel and Hamas: Conflict in Gaza (2008–2009)| publisher= Congressional Research Service|date=19 February 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=McCarthy | first=Rory | title=Gaza truce broken as Israeli raid kills six Hamas gunmen | website=the Guardian | date=2008-11-05 | url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/nov/05/israelandthepalestinians | access-date=2020-03-04}}</ref> and responded with [[Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel|rocket fire into Israel]].<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7818022.stm "Q&A: Gaza conflict"], BBC 18-01-2009</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=John Kroll |author2=Torchia |author3=Alfred de Montesquiou |date=18 January 2009 |newspaper=The Plain Dealer |location=Cleveland |url=http://www.cleveland.com/world/index.ssf/2009/01/israel_withdraws_from_gaza_str.html |title=Israeli troops exiting Gaza; Hamas ceases fire}}</ref> Attempts to renew a truce between Israel and Hamas were unsuccessful. On December 27, Israel began Operation Cast Lead with the stated aim of stopping rocket fire.<ref name="guardian.co.uk">{{Cite news |author=Rory McCarthy |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/sep/16/israel-rejects-war-crimes-gaza |title=Israel rejects war crimes findings of UN Gaza inquiry |newspaper=The Guardian |date=2009-09-16 |access-date=2010-05-08 |location=London}}</ref><ref>Bright, Arthur. [http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1226/p99s01-duts.html "Israel set to launch 'limited operation' in Gaza"], ''[[The Christian Science Monitor]]'', 26 December 2008. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090308113739/http://www.csmonitor.com/2008/1226/p99s01-duts.html |date=8 March 2009 }}</ref> In the initial air assault, Israel attacked police stations, military targets including weapons caches and suspected rocket firing teams, as well as political and administrative institutions, striking in the densely populated cities of [[Gaza City|Gaza]], [[Khan Yunis]] and [[Rafah]].<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf>{{cite news |url=http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/09/15/UNFFMGCReport.pdf |title=Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict |publisher=United Nations Human Rights Council |access-date=15 September 2009 |location=London}}</ref> After hostilities broke out, Palestinian groups fired rockets in retaliation for the aerial bombardments and attacks.<ref name=bbc1309/> The international community considers [[Indiscriminate attack|indiscriminate attacks]] on civilians and civilian structures that do not discriminate between civilians and military targets as [[Geneva conventions#Protocols|illegal under international law]].<ref name=HRW /><ref name=ICRC-humanShieldsArt51>{{cite web |title=Protection of the civilian population |url=http://www.icrc.org/ihl/WebART/470-750065 |website=Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I), 8 June 1977. |publisher=International Committee of the Red Cross |access-date=10 July 2014}}</ref><ref name="AI_briefing" /><!--Would editors please NOT edit the lede without first getting consensus for any change at the talk page. Any changes made first without discussion maybe reverted and taken to the talk page. Please also remember that this article is under the 1 revert rule. Thank you. -->
An Israeli ground invasion began on 3 January. On 5 January, the IDF began operating in the densely populated urban centers of Gaza. During the last week of the offensive (from 12 January), Israel mostly hit targets it had damaged before and struck Palestinian rocket-launching units.<ref name="Israeli Arsenal"/> Hamas intensified its rocket and mortar attacks against mostly civilian targets in southern Israel, reaching the major cities of [[Beersheba]] and [[Ashdod]] for the first time during the conflict.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3645485,00.html "Rockets land east of Ashdod"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090204064937/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3645485,00.html |date=4 February 2009 }} Ynetnews, 28 December 2008; [http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3647569,00.html "Rockets reach Beersheba, cause damage"], Ynetnews, 30 December 2008.</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Lazaroff |first=Tovah |date=30 September 2009 |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=156239 |title=Ashkelon rocket victim livid report ignored her plight |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2011-06-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/129467# |title=Another Miracle: Rocket Hits Empty Synagogue |publisher=Arutz Sheva |access-date=2010-05-08}}</ref> Israeli politicians ultimately decided against striking deeper within Gaza amid concerns of higher casualties on both sides and rising international criticism.{{citation needed|date=April 2020}} The conflict ended on 18 January, when the IDF first declared a [[unilateral]] ceasefire, followed by Hamas' announcing a [[Tahdiya|one-week ceasefire]] twelve hours later.<ref name="xinhua one week">{{Cite news |title=Hamas leader in Syria announce one-week ceasefire in Gaza |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/18/content_10679186.htm |publisher=Xinhua |date=2009-01-18 |access-date=2009-08-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090129074845/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/18/content_10679186.htm |archive-date=29 January 2009 }}</ref><ref name="cbc.ca one week">{{Cite news |title=Hamas agrees to 1-week ceasefire |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/hamas-agrees-to-1-week-ceasefire-1.781294 |publisher=CBC News |date=2009-01-18 |access-date=2009-08-03}}</ref> The IDF completed its withdrawal on 21 January.<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/18/israel.gaza/index.html "Hamas, Israel set independent cease-fires"], CNN International; [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7841902.stm Last Israeli troops 'leave Gaza'], BBC News, 21 January 2009.</ref>
In September 2009, a [[United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict|UN special mission]], headed by the South African Justice [[Richard Goldstone]], produced a [[United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict#Report|report]] accusing both Palestinian militants and the Israeli army of [[war crime]]s and possible crimes against humanity, and recommended bringing those responsible to justice.<ref name=BBCSept15a>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8257301.stm "UN condemns 'war crimes' in Gaza"], BBC News, 15 September 2009.</ref> In 2011, Goldstone wrote that he does not believe that Israel intentionally targeted civilians in Gaza as a matter of explicit policy.<ref>{{cite news |last=Goldstone |first=Richard |title=Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and War Crimes |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/reconsidering-the-goldstone-report-on-israel-and-war-crimes/2011/04/01/AFg111JC_story.html |newspaper=The Washington Post |access-date=1 April 2011 |date=2011-04-01}}</ref> The other authors of the report, [[Hina Jilani]], [[Christine Chinkin]], and [[Desmond Travers]], stated that no new evidence had been gathered that disputed the report's findings.<ref name="afp1404"/><ref name="g2011-04-14"/> The [[United Nations Human Rights Council]] ordered Israel to conduct various repairs of the damage. On 21 September 2012, the United Nations Human Rights Council concluded that 75% of civilian homes destroyed in the attack were not rebuilt.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/37F43DF70A64244A85257A8300515BE3 |title=A/HRC/21/33 of 21 September 2012 |publisher=Unispal.un.org |access-date=2014-08-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130920041254/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/37F43DF70A64244A85257A8300515BE3 |archive-date=20 September 2013 }}</ref>
==Background==
{{Main|Israeli–Palestinian conflict|Gaza–Israel conflict|Rocket and mortar attacks on southern Israel|Blockade of the Gaza Strip}}
{{See also|Timeline of the Gaza War|List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, 2008|List of Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel, 2009}}
Since 1967, Israel had occupied the [[Palestinian territories]]. Following the death of [[Yassar Arafat]] in November 2004, his successor to the Palestinian Authority, President Mahmoud Abbas, and Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon signed a ceasefire agreement on 8 February 2005, essentially bringing an end to the [[Second Intifada]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/meast/02/08/mideast/ |title=Palestinian, Israeli leaders announce cease-fire |work=CNN|year=2005| access-date=29 June 2018}}</ref> On 17 March 2005, the 13 main Palestinian factions including Hamas and Islamic Jihad agreed to be bound by the February agreement, conditional on cessation of Israeli attacks.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/palestinian-militants-agree-to-cease-fire |title=Palestinian Militants Agree to Cease-Fire|agency=Associated Press|work=Fox News|year=2006| access-date=29 June 2018}}</ref> Israel maintains that its occupation of Gaza ended following the completion of its [[Israel's unilateral disengagement plan|unilateral disengagement plan]] in September 2005.<ref name="is Gaza still occupied">{{cite web |title=Legal Acrobatics: The Palestinian Claim that Gaza is Still "Occupied" Even After Israel Withdraws |url=http://www.jcpa.org/brief/brief005-3.htm |publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs |date=26 August 2005 |access-date=31 May 2009 |archive-date=21 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100621082606/http://jcpa.org/brief/brief005-3.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Sabel |first=Robbie |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=91645 |date=10 February 2008 |title=Analysis: Is Gaza blockade a legitimate tool of war? |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Because in the post-disengagement period (after 2005) Israel has continued to control and occupy Gaza's airspace and territorial waters, and continues to restrict or prohibit the movement of people or goods in or out of Gaza<ref name="AI_briefing">{{cite web |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/mde15/007/2009/en/|title=Israel/Occupied Palestinian Territories: The conflict in Gaza: A briefing on applicable law, investigations and accountability |date=2009-01-19 |publisher=[[Amnesty International]] |access-date=2009-06-05 }}</ref><ref name="isrlpa13698"/> and to unilaterally dictate what Gazans may do in a border strip of variable and undefined width in their own territory,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/08/world/middleeast/palestinian-farmers-in-gaza-buffer-zone-remain-wary.html?mcubz=3 |title=Gaza Farmers Near Fence With Israel Remain Wary|author=Fares Akram and Jodi Ruderen|work=[[The New York Times]]|year=2013| access-date=2 June 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ochaopt.org/sites/default/files/ocha_opt_gaza_ara_factsheet_july_2013_english.pdf|title=Access restricted areas (ARA) in the Gaza strip|publisher=OCHAO|year=2013| access-date=2 June 2018}}</ref> the UN, the International Criminal Court<ref>{{cite web|url=http://opiniojuris.org/wp-content/uploads/2014-11-03-Final-Report-on-Situation-ICC-01.13.pdf |title=Situation on Registered Vessels of Comoros, Greece and Cambodia – Article 53(1) Report|author=The Office of the Prosecutor|publisher=International Criminal Court|year=2014| access-date=2 June 2018}}</ref> [[Human Rights Watch]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.btselem.org/gaza_strip/israels_obligations |title=The Gaza Strip – Israel's obligations under international law|edition=Hardcover|publisher=BTSELEM|year=2017| access-date=2 June 2018}}</ref> and many other [[Non-governmental organization|NGOs]] consider Israel still to be the [[occupying power]].<ref name="AI_briefing"/><ref name="isrlpa13698">[http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/07/06/isrlpa13698.htm "Human Rights Council Special Session on the Occupied Palestinian Territories"] 6 July 2006; Human Rights Watch considers Gaza still occupied.</ref><ref name="cnn2009-01-06">{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/06/israel.gaza.occupation.question/index.html |title=Is Gaza 'occupied' territory? |last=Levs |first=Josh |date=2009-01-06 |publisher=CNN |access-date=2009-05-30}}</ref>
Hamas refrained from firing rockets toward Israel for 14 months in accordance with the February ceasefire agreement, until IDF naval shelling hit a Gaza beach, killing seven civilians, on 10 June 2006.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/10/world/middleeast/10mideast.html |title=Hamas Fires Rockets at Israel After Calling Off Truce|author=Steven Erlanger|work=[[The New York Times]]|year=2006| access-date=29 June 2018}}</ref>
Israel and the [[Quartet on the Middle East|Quartet]] failed to anticipate [[Hamas]]'s electoral victory {{citation needed|date=April 2024}} in the [[2006 Palestinian legislative election|January 2006 legislative elections]], which the U.S. had pushed for. The victory permitted the formation of a Hamas-led Palestinian Authority government in March 2006. The Quartet (the United States, Russia, United Nations, and European Union) conditioned future foreign assistance to the Hamas-led PA on the future government's commitment to nonviolence, recognition of the state of Israel, and acceptance of previous agreements.<ref name=bombshell>{{cite news |last=Rose |first=David |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/politics/features/2008/04/gaza200804?printable=true&currentPage=all |title=The Gaza Bombshell |magazine=Vanity Fair |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Hamas rejected the demands, calling the conditions unfair and endangering the well-being of Palestinians,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4664152.stm |title=Hamas rejects 'unfair' aid demand|author=Staff writers|edition=Hardcover |work=BBC|year=2006| access-date=3 June 2018}}</ref> leading to Quartet suspension of its foreign assistance program and to [[Israel]] imposing [[2006–2007 economic sanctions against the Palestinian National Authority|economic sanctions]].<ref name="U.S. Foreign Aid to the Palestinians">{{cite web |author=Jeremy M. Sharp |author2=Christopher M. Blanchard |publisher=Congressional Research Service |url=https://fpc.state.gov/documents/organization/68794.pdf |title=U.S. Foreign Aid to the Palestinians |access-date=2014-08-17}}</ref> In a widely cited article,<ref>[[Nathan Thrall]], [https://books.google.com/books?id=1oXZDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA271 ''The Only Language They Understand: Forcing Compromise in Israel and Palestine,''] Henry Holt and Company, 2017 p. 271 n.20</ref><ref>Bjorn Brenner, [https://books.google.com/books?id=LY2aDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA237 ''Gaza Under Hamas: From Islamic Democracy to Islamist Governance,''] I.B. Tauris, 2017 p. 207 n.21</ref><ref>Eugenio Lilli, [https://books.google.com/books?id=mIlFDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA98 #''New Beginning in US-Muslim Relations: President Obama and the Arab Awakening,''] Springer, 2016 p. 98,n.46
</ref><ref>Jason Brownlee, [https://books.google.com/books?id=LlQgAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA223 ''Democracy Prevention: The Politics of the U.S.-Egyptian Alliance,''] [[Cambridge University Press]], 2012 p. 223, notes 76, 78</ref> [[David Rose (journalist)|David Rose]] outlined material suggesting that the United States and Israel then attempted to have the Palestinian National Authority stage a coup to overturn the election results, a manoeuvre Hamas is said to have preempted in Gaza with its takeover from Fatah.<ref name=bombshell /><ref name="Beinart2012" /><ref>Daniel C. Kurtzer, Scott B. Lasensky, William B. Quandt, Steven L. Spiegel, Shibley Telhami,
[https://books.google.com/books?id=FMKnin_jqzYC&pg=PA217 ''The Peace Puzzle: America's Quest for Arab-Israeli Peace, 1989–2011,''] [[Cornell University Press]], 2012 p. 217:'The Bush administration's language (POV) is that Hamas mounted a coup. Rose's view supported by NYTs reportage states that Hamas's takeover was preemptive of a coup.'</ref>
In June 2007, following [[Battle of Gaza (2007)|Hamas's takeover of Gaza from Fatah]], Israel imposed a ground, air, and maritime [[Blockade of the Gaza Strip|blockade]], and announced it would allow only humanitarian supplies into the Strip.<ref name="BBC7838618">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7545636.stm "Gaza under blockade"], BBC News, 15 June 2009.</ref><ref name="AnthonyHCordesman">{{cite web |author=Anthony H. Cordesman |url=http://www.csis.org/media/csis/pubs/090202_gaza_war.pdf |title=The 'Gaza War': A Strategic Analysis |publisher=Center for Strategic & International Studies |date=3 March 2009 |page=7 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090418165547/http://www.csis.org/media/csis/pubs/090202_gaza_war.pdf |archive-date=18 April 2009}}</ref> Palestinian groups were partially able to bypass the blockade through tunnels, some of which are said to have been used for weapons smuggling.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5535747.ece |author=Kevin Dowling |title=Strikes on Gaza continue ahead of imminent ceasefire |date=17 January 2009 |page=2 |newspaper=The Times |access-date=2014-08-17}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{subscription required}}</ref> According to a US diplomatic cable that quoted Israeli diplomats, Israel's policy was to "keep Gaza's economy on the brink of collapse".<ref name="Beinart2012" >[[Peter Beinart]], [https://books.google.com/books?id=v0U1fjErMGkC&pg=PT239 ''The Crisis of Zionism,''] [[Melbourne University Press]] 2012 p. 227
n.77:'''punish Gazans for electing''': Israeli leaders said explicitly that their purpose in initiating the blockade was not merely to prevent Hamas and other terrorist groups from importing arms but also "to keep the Gazan economy on the brink of collapse'.'</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Israel used 'calorie count' to limit Gaza food during blockade, critics claim | website=the Guardian | date=2012-10-17 | url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/oct/17/israeli-military-calorie-limit-gaza | ref={{sfnref | the Guardian | 2012}} | access-date=2018-06-04}}</ref> After a three-and-a-half-year legal battle waged by the Gisha human rights organization, the Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) finally released a 2008 document that detailed its "red lines" for "food consumption in the Gaza Strip", in which a calculation was made of the number of calories needed to be provided to Gaza by external sources to avoid malnutrition. COGAT said that the document was a draft, and never discussed nor implemented. An Israeli appeal court disagreed.<ref>{{cite web | title=2,279 calories per person: How Israel made sure Gaza didn't starve | website=haaretz.com | date=2012-10-17 | url=https://www.haaretz.com/.premium-israel-s-gaza-quota-2-279-calories-a-day-1.5193157 | ref={{sfnref | haaretz.com | 2012}} | access-date=2018-06-05}}</ref><ref>[[Padraig O'Malley]] [https://books.google.com/books?id=3_kVBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA393 ''The Two-State Delusion: Israel and Palestine – A Tale of Two Narratives,''] Penguin, 2015 p. 393, n.58.</ref><ref>Gershon Shafir, [https://books.google.com/books?id=8uM6DgAAQBAJ&pg=PA52 ''A Half Century of Occupation: Israel, Palestine, and the World's Most Intractable Conflict,''] [[University of California Press]], 2017 p. 52</ref><ref>Hussein A. Amery, [https://books.google.com/books?id=O57VCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA73 ''Arab Water Security: Threats and Opportunities in the Gulf States,''] [[Cambridge University Press]], 2015 pp. 73–74:'Between 2006 and the middle of 2010, Israel imposed a strict blockade against Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip. [[Gisha]], an Israeli advocacy group, described the blockade as tantamount to "economic warfare" and collective punishment against the 1-5 million residents of Gaza. Israeli documents reveal that during that period its military "made precise calculations of Gaza's caloric needs to avoid malnutrition", and sought to "keep Gaza's economy on the brink of collapse". For the Israeli army, the purpose of the blockade was to weaken Hamas, its archenemy. Israeli calibrated its economic siege of Palestinian territory by withholding a lot of the food supply, which caused real suffering yet allowed enough food through so as not to cause a dire economic crisis that might generate images of "hungry children". [[Dov Weissglass]], an advisor to the Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon, joked: 'It's like a meeting with a dietician. We have to make them (Palestinians) much thinner, but not enough to die.{{"'}}</ref>
Between 2005 and 2007, Palestinian groups in Gaza fired about 2,700 locally made Qassam rockets into Israel, killing four Israeli civilians and injuring 75 others. During the same period, Israel fired more than 14,600 155&nbsp;mm artillery shells into the Gaza Strip, killing 59 Palestinians and injuring 270. According to the [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]], between 2005 and 2008, 116 Israelis, including civilians and Israeli security forces, which includes [[Israeli police]], [[Israeli Border Police]] and members of the armed services, were killed in both Israel and the [[Palestinian Territories]] in "direct conflict related incidents" and 1,509 were injured.<ref name="ocha_background_dead">{{cite web |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/POC_Monthly_Tables_October_2008.pdf |title=POC Monthly Tables October_2008 |date=October 2008 |publisher=[[OCHA|OCHA-oPt]] |access-date=2009-02-25 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225151513/http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/POC_Monthly_Tables_October_2008.pdf |archive-date=25 February 2009 }}</ref> During this time, 1,735 Palestinians, including civilians and militants from various groups, were killed and 8,308 wounded in "direct conflict related incidents".<ref name="ocha_background_dead" />
===2008 six-month ceasefire===
{{Main|2008 Israel–Hamas ceasefire}}
[[File:Israelis killed by Palestinians in Israel and Palestinians killed by Israelis in Gaza - 2008 prior to Gaza War.png|thumb|Palestinians killed by the IDF in Gaza (<span style="color:red;">red</span>) and Israelis killed by Palestinians in Israel (<span style="color:blue;">blue</span>) during January–December 2008 according to [[B'Tselem]]]]
[[File:Rock mort gaza 2008.JPG|thumb|Rocket hits in Israel, January–December 2008<ref name="rockmort">[http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/ipc_e007.pdf "Summary of Rocket Fire and Mortar Shelling in 2008"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524125511/http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/ipc_e007.pdf |date=24 May 2011 }}. (pdf) [[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center]]. Retrieved 14 January 2009. pp. 5–7. Drop in rocket fire calculated from data provided in report.</ref>]]
Israel had been preparing to intervene militarily in the Gaza Strip since March 2007.<ref>[[Uri Blau]], [https://www.haaretz.com/1.5059871 'IDF Sources: Conditions Not Yet Optimal for Gaza Exit,'] [[Haaretz]] 8 January 2009.</ref> In June as talks for a negotiated agreement between the two parties were underway, the defense minister [[Ehud Barak]] ordered the IDF to prepare operational plans for action within the Strip.<ref name="Ravid" >[[Barak Ravid]], [https://www.haaretz.com/1.5078932 'Disinformation, Secrecy, and How the Gaza Offensive came about,'] [[Haaretz]] 27 December 2008</ref> On 19 June 2008, an Egyptian-brokered six-month "lull" or [[2008 Israel–Hamas ceasefire|pause in hostilities between Israel and Hamas]] went into effect.<ref name=kershner>{{Cite news |title=Rockets hit Israel, breaking Hamas truce |newspaper=International Herald Tribune |author=Isabel Kershner |date=2008-06-25 |url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/06/25/africa/25mideast.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080707053304/http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/06/25/africa/25mideast.php |archive-date=7 July 2008}}</ref> The agreement had no mutually agreed text or enforcement mechanism and eventually collapsed.<ref name=nyt-truce/> The lull agreed to was thought necessary to allow time for the IDF to prepare its operation.<ref name="Ravid" /><ref>[[Norman Finkelstein]] [https://books.google.com/books?id=yyBdDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA35 ''Gaza: An Inquest into Its Martyrdom,''] [[University of California Press]], 2018 {{isbn|978-0-520-96838-7}} p. 35</ref>
The agreement required Hamas to end rocket and mortar attacks on [[Israel]], while that country would cease attacks on and military incursions into Gaza, plus progressively ease the blockade of Gaza over a thirteen-day period.<ref name=HoC>{{cite web|url=http://researchbriefings.parliament.uk/ResearchBriefing/Summary/SN04946 |title=Gaza: The conflict between Israel and Hamas|author=Stephen Jones|publisher=Library – House of Commons|year=2009| access-date=4 June 2018}}</ref>
Points on which there was not mutual agreement included an end to Hamas' military buildup in Gaza and movement toward the release of Corporal Shalit.<ref name=ITIC>{{cite web|url=http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/hamas_e017.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091013120923/http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/hamas_e017.pdf |archive-date=13 October 2009 |title=The Six Months of the Lull Arrangement |publisher=Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center|year=2008|access-date=4 June 2018}}</ref><ref name="Israel Agrees to Truce with Hamas on Gaza">{{Cite news |title=Israel Agrees to Truce with Hamas on Gaza |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/world/middleeast/18mideast.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=2008-06-18 |first=Isabel |last=Kershner |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref>
Hamas called on all of Gaza's militant groups to abide by the truce, and was confident they would do so.<ref name="Israel confirms Hamas ceasefire deal">[https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israel-confirms-hamas-ceasefire-deal-849414.html "Israel confirms Hamas ceasefire deal"], ''The Independent'', 18 June 2008</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7459200.stm Israel and Hamas 'agree truce'] [[BBC News]] 18 June 2008 'A Hamas official said he was confident all militant groups in Gaza would abide by the agreement, brokered by Egypt'.</ref><ref>Nidal al-Mughrabi, [https://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-egypt-idUSL0857246620080708  Hamas and Egypt to discuss truce, prisoner swap deal], [[Reuters]] 8 July 2008:' Hamas has called on all militant groups in Gaza to abide by the truce, but some factions have vowed to respond militarily to Israeli raids in the occupied West Bank, which is not covered by the truce.'</ref><ref>Richard Boudreaux, [https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2008-jun-18-fg-truce18-story.html Israel and Hamas OK Gaza truce] [[Los Angeles Times]] June 18, 2008: "As details of the accord were being worked out, Israeli aircraft attacked targets in southern Gaza, killing six militants in a car. Gaza militants then fired four mortar shells at Israel, but no one was hurt. Hamas officials said the violence would not prevent the truce from taking effect." They said all militant groups in Gaza had promised to abide by it</ref> Defense Ministry Official Amos Gilad, the Israeli envoy to the talks, stressed that Israel demanded a ceasefire, meaning that even one single rocket fired will be seen as a violation of the agreement. He added that Egypt, on its side, was committed to preventing the smuggling activity from Gaza.<ref name="Top Defense Ministry official: If Shalit is not released, Rafah stays closed">[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3557573,00.html "Top Defense Ministry official: If Shalit is not released, Rafah stays closed"], Ynetnews, 16 June 2008</ref> Gilad also said that Israel would hold Hamas responsible for attacks from Gaza.<ref name="Israel confirms Hamas ceasefire deal" /> In a British Foreign Affairs Committee investigation, Dr Albasoos said that "Unfortunately, on 4 November 2008, the Israeli army killed six Palestinians. I was leaving the Gaza Strip to come to the UK that same night. I remember when the Israeli army invaded the middle area of the Gaza Strip, killing six Palestinians. It was outrageous from their side to come and breach that ceasefire. I believe that Palestinian political factions, including Hamas, committed to that ceasefire and still have the intention to renew it in the near future, as soon as possible." In rebuttal, Ms Bar-Yaacov said that "The Israelis had added a condition to the tahdia (truce), being concerned that Hamas was building tunnels to go under the Israeli border and kidnap more Israeli soldiers. The condition stated that if Hamas came within 500 metres of the border, they (the IDF) would attack and that is exactly what happened (on 4 November 2008)."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200809/cmselect/cmfaff/261/09021102.htm|title=Examination of Witnesses (Questions 1-19)|author=Foreign Affairs Committee |publisher=House of Commons|year=2009| access-date=25 June 2018}}</ref> British barrister and professor [[Geoffrey Nice]], and General [[Nick Parker]], opined during a lecture that "Building a tunnel was not a breach of the ceasefire but the armed incursion into Gaza definitely was."<ref name=gresham>{{cite web|url=https://www.gresham.ac.uk/lecture/transcript/print/gaza-israel-the-legal-and-the-military-view/ |title=Gaza-Israel: The Legal and Military View |author=Professor Sir Geoffrey Nice QC and General Sir Nick Parker|publisher=Gresham College|year=2015| access-date=25 June 2018}}</ref>
====Implementation====
Pre-5 November 2008: "The ceasefire has brought enormous improvements in the quality of life in Sderot and other Israeli villages near Gaza, where before the ceasefire residents lived in fear of the next Palestinian rocket strike. However, nearby in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli blockade remains in place and the population has so far seen few dividends from the ceasefire."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/56000/mde150452008en.pdf|title=Israel/Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT): Gaza ceasefire – Israel and Hamas must step back from the brink|publisher=Amnesty International|year=2008| access-date=25 June 2018}}</ref>
Hamas was careful to maintain the ceasefire.<ref name=Mason>{{cite book |last=Mason|first=Victoria|editor-last1=Poynting|editor-first1=Scott |editor-last2=Whyte|editor-first2=David|title=Counter-Terrorism and State Political Violence: The 'War on Terror' as Terror|chapter='No permission to shoot in Gaza is necessary': Israeli State terror against Palestinians in Gaza during Operation Cast Lead|publisher=Routledge|year=2012|pages=119–22 |isbn=978-0-415-60720-9}}</ref><ref name=ITIC2>{{cite web|url=https://www.terrorism-info.org.il/Data/pdf/PDF_08_300_2.pdf|title=The Six Months of the Lull Arrangement|publisher=Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Israel Intelligence Heritage & Commemoration Center |year=2008| access-date=21 June 2008}}</ref> Despite Israel's refusal to comply significantly with the truce agreement to end the siege/blockade, Hamas brought rocket and mortar fire from Gaza to a virtual halt during the summer and fall of 2008.<ref name=Carter>{{cite web|url=https://www.cartercenter.org/resources/pdfs/peace/conflict_resolution/gaza_movement_and_fatalities_report%20final%201%2022%2009.pdf|title=The June 2008 Gaza Ceasefire|author=Jimmy Carter|publisher=The Carter Center|year=2009| access-date=29 June 2018}}</ref> Hamas "tried to enforce the terms of the arrangement" on other Palestinian groups, taking "a number of steps against networks which violated the arrangement", including short-term detention and confiscating their weapons, but it could not completely end the rocket and mortar shell attacks by these rogue factions in Gaza. Hamas had sought support in Gazan public opinion for its policy of maintaining the ceasefire.<ref name=Porter>{{cite web|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/09/israel-rejected-hamas-cea_n_156639.html?show_comment_id=19558888|title=Israel Rejected Hamas Ceasefire Offer In December|author=Gareth Porter|publisher=Huffington Post|year=2009| access-date=21 June 2018}}</ref> On 2 August there were massive clashes in Gaza City after Hamas had stepped up its campaign to curb Fatah from attacking Israel<ref name=JPSPrelude/>
The truce started uneasily with the UN recording seven IDF violations of the ceasefire between 20 and 26 June. On various occasions Israeli forces shot at farmers, wood collectors and fishermen in Gaza territory, seriously injuring two farmers. Subsequently, between 23 and 26 June, nine Qassam rockets were fired at Israel in three separate violations by Palestinian groups not affiliated with Hamas. No Israelis were injured.<ref>{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080629010929/http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L26679526.htm |archive-date=29 June 2008 |access-date=26 June 2008 |url=http://www.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/L26679526.htm |title=FACTBOX-Israel, Palestinians trade blame for truce violations}}</ref><ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3559761,00.html "Qassam lands in Sderot backyard"], Ynetnews, 24 June 2008</ref><ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3561051,00.html "Mortar shells land near southern kibbutz"], Ynetnews, 27 June 2008</ref><ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3561413,00.html "Palestinians fire mortars at Karni crossing"], Ynetnetws, 29 June 2008</ref> Islamic Jihad reportedly fired the rockets in retaliation for Israeli assassinations of their members in the West Bank.
According to sources close to the ceasefire negotiations, after 72 hours from the start of the ceasefire, the crossing points would be opened to allow 30 per cent more goods to enter the Gaza strip. Ten days after that (i.e. thirteen days after the ceasefire began), all crossings would be open between Gaza and Israel, and Israel will allow the transfer of all goods that were banned or restricted to go into Gaza.<ref name=HoC/> Therefore, besides firing on and killing Gaza citizens, Israel failed further to comply with these truce obligations to ease the blockade that were crucial to all groups in Gaza. Islamic Jihad put pressure on Hamas to press Israel to comply with this vital part of the truce.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=206441|title=Islamic Jihad calls on Hamas to press Israel to comply with truce|publisher=Ma'an News Agency|year=2006| access-date=24 June 2018}}</ref> The Carter Center recorded, based on U.N. OCHAO data, that instead of easing the blockade according to the agreed schedule, "... despite the 97% drop in attacks, the truce did not do much to ease the siege of Gaza. Imports increased only marginally ... only 27% of the amount of goods entering in January 2007" were allowed through at best. No exports were allowed. After the June 2008 ceasefire, the number of Palestinians entering and exiting Gaza at the Rafah crossing with Egypt increased slightly, with 108 people leaving in August 2008, but this number decreased soon after to only one in October 2008. The passage of Gazans through the Erez crossing reveal similar low numbers.<ref name=Carter/> Historian Ian Bickerton argues that Israel's failure to comply with the terms of the truce made conditions harder in Gaza.<ref>'In June 2008, Egypt brokered a six-month ceasefire. Israel increased the severity of its blockade of Gaza during the ceasefire, drastically restricting the entry of supplies necessary for daily living and preventing exports from leaving the Strip. The exchange of rockets launched and retaliatory aerial assaults increased late in 2008 with Hamas and Israel blaming each other for a breakdown in the ceasefire. The evidence suggests Israel broke the ceasefire with a raid into the Gaza Strip that killed six Hamas men on 4 November – the night of the presidential election in the USA.'Ian Bickerton [https://books.google.com/books?id=jf5GAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA238 ''The Arab-Israeli Conflict: A Guide for the Perplexed,''] [[A&C Black]] 2012 p. 238.</ref>
Even though not part of the generally accepted truce terms,<ref name=HoC/> by 23 June 2006 Hamas and Israel began talks, via an Egyptian intermediary, regarding the release of the captured IDF soldier, Shalit.<ref name=JPSPrelude>{{cite journal |last=Esposit |first=Michele K. |title=Prelude to Operation Cast Lead Israel's Unilateral Disengagement to the Eve of War |journal=Journal of Palestine Studies |date=Spring 2009 |volume=38 |issue=3 |pages=139–68 |jstor=10.1525/jps.2009.XXXVIII.3.139 |doi=10.1525/jps.2009.xxxviii.3.139|quote=Hamas vowed to secure the truce but refused to "act as Israel's police force" by confronting violators. On 6/26, Hamas's Gaza security chief (and former PA interior minister) Said Siyam convened the heads of Gaza's factions to discuss truce adherence, and Islamic Jihad pledged to coordinate future responses with Hamas. Hamas-affiliated imams focused Friday sermons (6/27) on the need to support the truce in the interests of the Palestinian people |issn = 0377-919X}}</ref>
"As of 15 August, the UN reported that Israel was allowing a few new items into Gaza (including limited supplies of cement, clothes, juices, and agricultural materials) but said that overall humanitarian conditions had not significantly improved since the cease-fire began". After a few weeks of calm, clashes resumed. On 12 September the IDF shot and seriously wounded an unarmed Palestinian who strayed close to the border. A retaliatory rocket was fired. On 16 September IDF troops entered central Gaza to bulldoze land along the border fence. On 23 September, the UN reported, "Although the cease-fire has afforded the populations in southern Israel and Gaza greater security, there has been no corresponding improvement in living conditions for the population in Gaza.<ref name=JPSPrelude/> After the initial increase of goods allowed into Gaza to 30% of the 2007 levels, OCHAO data shows that the through-flow then fell rapidly through the September–October lull in rocket fire to below even pre-June levels.<ref name=Carter/><ref name=JPSPrelude/>
Notwithstanding Hamas not having fired a single rocket during the truce prior to 5 November 2008,<ref name=Mason/> Israel accused Hamas of bad faith and of violations of the Egyptian-mediated truce. Even though neither was included as Hamas obligations under the generally accepted terms of this truce,<ref name=HoC/> Israel noted that rocket fire from Gaza never stopped entirely ("between June 19 and November 4, 20 rockets,<ref>(three of which fell inside the Gaza Strip)</ref> and 18 mortar shells<ref>(five of which fell inside the Gaza Strip)</ref> were fired at Israel") and that weapons smuggling was not halted,<ref name="ITIC-2008-12">{{cite web |url=http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/data/pdf/PDF_08_300_2.pdf |title=The Six Months of the Lull Arrangement |date=December 2008 |publisher=Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at the Israel ([[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center|ITIC]]) |access-date=4 March 2015}}</ref> Hamas, in turn, accused Israel of non-compliance with the truce by never allowing the major renewal of goods' flow into Gaza and of conducting raids that killed Hamas fighters.<ref name="nyt-truce">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/20/world/middleeast/20mideast.html |title=Gaza Truce May Be Revived by Necessity |last=Bronner |first=Ethan |author2=Taghreed El-Khodary |date=2008-12-20 |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=2009-02-12}}</ref><ref name=Guardian20091105>[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/nov/05/israelandthepalestinians "Gaza truce broken as Israeli raid kills six Hamas gunmen"], ''The Guardian'', Rory McCarthy, 5 November 2008</ref>
During October 2008 Israel-Palestinian violence fell to its lowest level since the start of the al-Aqsa intifada in September 2000.<ref name=JPSPrelude/> One rocket and one mortar shell were fired at Israel in October.<ref name="ITIC-2009-02-01">{{cite web |url=http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/ipc_e007.pdf |title=Summary of rocket fire and mortar shelling in 2008 |date=2009-02-01 |publisher=[[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center|ITIC]] |access-date=4 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524125511/http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/ipc_e007.pdf |archive-date=2011-05-24}}</ref> However, during the same period several Israeli violations were reported: In South Gaza on 3 October the IDF fired on two unarmed Palestinians near the border and sent soldiers into the strip to arrest them and detain them in Israel. On 19 October IDF bulldozers entered Gaza. On 27 October IDF soldiers fired into Gaza for unknown reasons damaging a school in [[Khuza'a, Khan Yunis|Khuza'a]] and injuring one child. Palestinian fishing boats off the Gaza coast were fired upon on four separate occasions during the month wounding two fishermen, one of them seriously.<ref name=JPSPrelude/> According to [[Mondoweiss]], for the entire duration of the 2008 Hamas–Israel cease-fire – even after the Israeli raid of a Hamas tunnel on 4 November – not a single person was killed by rocket or mortar fire into Israel.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mondoweiss.net/2012/11/dissecting-idf-propaganda-the-numbers-behind-the-rocket-attacks/|title=Dissecting IDF propaganda: The numbers behind the rocket attacks|author=Phan Nguyen|publisher=Mondoweiss|year=2012| access-date=24 June 2018}}</ref>
==Pre-war escalations==
===4 November IDF raid and aftermath===
{{Further|Violence in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict 2008}}
On 4 November 2008, Israel launched a cross-border military raid (variously also referred to as an attack / invasion / incident / military event / incursion) code named '''Operation Double Challenge''' into a residential area of Dayr al-Balah in central Gaza to destroy the opening of a cross-border<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZBBADwAAQBAJ&pg=PA27|title=Underground Warfare|last=Richemond-Barak|first=Daphné|date=2018|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-045724-2|language=en}}</ref> tunnel concealed within a building 300 meters from the fence on the Gaza Strip border.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}} Professor Sir Geoffrey Nice QC and General Sir Nick Parker observed that "Building a tunnel was not a breach of the ceasefire but the (IDF) armed incursion into Gaza definitely was."<ref name="gresham"/><ref name = "Shlaim">{{cite journal|title= From The Historical Archive: Israel and the arrogance of power|last=Shlaim|first=Avi|year=2015|journal=Irish Pages|volume=9|issue=2|pages=133–80|jstor=44508360}}</ref> Various outlets and authors reported this Israeli action as breaking the June truce.<ref name=Guardian20091105/><ref name=Mason/><ref>[http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/data/pdf/PDF_08_300_2.pdf "The Six Months of the Lull Arrangement"], [[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center]] December 2008: 'A period of relative quiet between 19 June and 4 November: As of 19 June, there was a marked reduction in the extent of attacks on the western Negev population. The lull was sporadically violated by rocket and mortar shell fire, carried out by rogue terrorist organizations, in some instances in defiance of Hamas (especially by Fatah and Al-Qaeda supporters). Hamas was careful to maintain the ceasefire.... The escalation and erosion of the lull arrangement, 4 November to the time of this writing, December 172: On 4 November the IDF carried out a military action close to the border security fence on the Gazan side to prevent an abduction planned by Hamas, which had dug a tunnel under the fence to that purpose. Seven Hamas terrorist operatives were killed during the action. In retaliation, Hamas and the other terrorist organizations attacked Israel with a massive barrage of rockets.... During the second period a new dynamic was created which replaced the former relative calm: Hamas and the other terrorist organizations extended their attacks (rocket and mortar shell fire, IEDs and light-arms fire), the IDF operated to prevent attacks within the Gaza Strip (Israeli Air Force attacks, firing at terrorist squads within the Gaza Strip near the border), the terrorist organizations responded with barrages of rocket and mortar shell fire to retaliate for their losses and continued daily sporadic fire, in response to which Israel closed the border crossings, exerting pressure on Hamas and the Gaza Strip residents.... With the escalation in rocket and mortar shell attacks which began on 4 November, Israel began closing the crossings for longer periods. That led to shortages of basic goods in the Gaza Strip and to disruptions in the supply of various types of fuel (although electrical power was not cut off, since the plant in Ashqelon, which supplies 65% of the Gaza Strip's electricity, provided an uninterrupted flow of power).'</ref> According to ''The Telegraph'', writing as Cast Lead began, the 4 November operation "sealed the fate of the ceasefire".<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel attack on Gaza: Fragile peace shattered again|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/palestinianauthority/3981502/Israel-attack-on-Gaza-Fragile-peace-shattered-again.html|publisher=The Telegraph|date=December 27, 2008 |access-date=March 24, 2020}}</ref> Author [[Avi Shlaim]] wrote in 2015 that the "...ceasefire had a dramatic effect in de-escalating the conflict.....It was Israel that violated the ceasefire. On 4 November 2008 the (IDF) launched a raid into Gaza and killed 6 Hamas fighters. That was the end of the ceasefire." and that Hamas had set a "good example" in respecting the ceasefire.<ref name = Shlaim /> The raid, according to [[Mark LeVine]] was unprovoked.<ref name="LeVine" >[[Mark LeVine]], [http://www.aljazeera.com/focus/war_on_gaza/2009/01/2009110112723260741.html "Who will save Israel from itself?"], [[Al Jazeera Media Network|Al Jazeera]] 27 December 2009</ref> Israel stated its aim was to destroy what it said was a tunnel on the Gaza-Israel border dug by militants to infiltrate into Israel and abduct soldiers. While accusing Hamas of plotting to dig a tunnel under the border, Israeli defense official was quoted in ''[[The Washington Times]]'' as separately acknowledging that Israel wanted to "send Hamas a message".<ref name=JPSPrelude/> According to Israel, the raid was not a violation of the ceasefire, but a legitimate step to remove an immediate threat. The 2009 Report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict noted that "the ceasefire began to founder on 4 November 2008 following an incursion by Israeli soldiers into the Gaza Strip".<ref>{{cite report |author=Richard Goldstone |author2=Christine Chinkin |author3=Hina Jilani |author4=Desmond Travers |date= September 25, 2009|title=Report of the United Nations Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict |url= https://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/12session/A-HRC-12-48.pdf|publisher=UN |page= 68|access-date=March 24, 2020 |quote=After two months in which few incidents were reported, the ceasefire began to founder on 4 November 2008 following an incursion by Israeli soldiers into the Gaza Strip, which Israel stated was to close a cross-border tunnel that in Israel's view was intended to be used by Palestinian fighters to kidnap Israeli soldiers.}}</ref>
====Tunnel threat====
Dr. Ido Hart, an Israeli defence analyst specialising in underground warfare, defined three types of Gaza tunnels, namely those intended for 'smuggling' from Egypt, those which are 'defensive' in nature designed for storage and protection, and those that are 'offensive' permitting cross-border penetrations into Israel by Gaza militants. "Once you find the entrance, you have to climb inside to know whether it is a defensive or offensive tunnel".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/02/tunnels-hamas-israel-struggle-gaza-war|title=Inside the tunnels Hamas built: Israel's struggle against new tactic in Gaza war|author=Harriet Sherwood|work=The Guardian|year=2014| access-date=24 June 2018}}</ref> Defensive tunnels have served as an 'escape hatch' for senior Hamas officials during Israeli invasions.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9F3w57hgHoxQXdHSVhCM1dDSVk/view|title=Gaza's tunnels phenomenon – the unintended dynamics of Israel's siege|author=Nicolas Pelham|publisher=Journal of Palestine Studies, Vol 31, No 6, pp. 6–31 |year=2006}}</ref> "The purpose of the defensive tunnels is to enable the Hamas command structure to reside safely underground while their armed forces conduct a mobile defence against Israeli forces.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-28430298|title=Gaza: How Hamas tunnel network grew|author=Eado Hecht |work=BBC|year=2006}}</ref> Robert Pastor, who was intimately involved in the indirect 2008 Hamas-Israel negotiations, stated "There is some dispute as to whether that tunnel was intended to capture an Israeli soldier or whether it was a defensive tunnel to protect against an Israeli incursion.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.democracynow.org/2009/1/22/ex_carter_admin_official_israel_ignored|title=Ex-Carter Admin Official: Israel Ignored Hamas Offer Days Before Attacking Gaza; Violated Ceasefire with Attacks, Blockade|author=Juan Gonzalez|publisher=DemocracyNow|year=2009| access-date=24 June 2018}}</ref> Later, once a new ceasefire had been negotiated, Pastor was quoted as saying that "Hamas officials asserted, however, that the tunnel was being dug for defensive purposes, not to capture IDF personnel" and furthermore that an IDF official had confirmed that fact to him.<ref name=Porter/>
The IDF allegation that the 'tunnel' attacked by it on 4 November 2008 was 'offensive', aimed at abducting IDF soldiers and posing an imminent threat, was also reported with doubt by various other players and commentators, such as UNISPAL that wrote "IDF special forces had entered the area to blow up a tunnel dug by Hamas for allegedly kidnapping IDF soldiers."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://unispal.un.org/DPA/DPR/unispal.nsf/0/8A0D9239EF9095058525753E00667A2C|title=Chronological Review of Events Relating to the Question of Palestine – Monthly media monitoring review |author=Division for Palestinian Rights (DPR)|publisher=UNISPAL|date=November 2008| access-date=25 June 2018}}</ref> Another example is the Israeli daily Ha'aretz that wrote "(The tunnel was) dug ostensibly to facilitate the abduction of Israeli soldiers, (but the tunnel) was not a clear and present danger".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.haaretz.com/1.5059097|title=Crushing the Tahadiyeh|author=Zvi Bar'el|publisher=Ha'aretz|year=2014|access-date=24 June 2018}}</ref> Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter wrote, "Israel launched an attack in Gaza to destroy a defensive tunnel being dug by Hamas inside the wall that encloses Gaza."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/07/AR2009010702645.html??noredirect=on|title=An Unnecessary War|author=Jimmy Carter|newspaper=The Washington Post|year=2009| access-date=25 June 2018}}</ref> The ''Journal of Palestine Studies'' favourably referenced Norman Finkelstein: "Israel broke the cease-fire by killing seven Palestinian militants, on the flimsy excuse that Hamas was digging a tunnel to abduct Israeli soldiers, and knowing full well that its operation would provoke Hamas into hitting back."<ref>{{cite journal |last=Finkelstein |first=Norman |year=2009 |title= Foiling another Palestinian 'Peace Offensive': Behind the Bloodbath in Gaza |journal= Journal of Palestine Studies |volume=39 |issue=3 |pages=223–39 |url= http://www.palestine-studies.org/sites/default/files/uploads/files/Background%20and%20Context.pdf |access-date=25 June 2018 |quote= The fundamental motives behind the latest Israeli attack on Gaza lie elsewhere: (1) in the need to restore Israel's "deterrence capacity," and (2) in the threat posed by a new Palestinian "peace offensive. ... Israel's "larger concern" in the current offensive, New York Times Middle East correspondent Ethan Bronner reported, quoting Israeli sources, was to "re-establish Israeli deterrence," because "its enemies are less afraid of it than they once were, or should be." Preserving its deterrence capacity has always loomed large in Israeli strategic doctrine. ... It is impossible to claim that those who decided to blow up the tunnel were simply being thoughtless. The military establishment was aware of the immediate implications of the measure, as well as of the fact that the policy of "controlled entry" into a narrow area of the Strip leads to the same place: an end to the lull. That is policy—not a tactical decision by a commander on the ground" }}</ref> Noam Chomsky observed: "The pretext for the raid was that Israel had detected a tunnel in Gaza that might have been intended for use to capture another Israeli soldier; a 'ticking tunnel' in official communiques. The pretext was transparently absurd, as a number of commentators noted. If such a tunnel existed, and reached the border, Israel could easily have barred it right there."<ref>{{cite web|url=https://chomsky.info/20090119/|title="Exterminate all the Brutes": Gaza 2009|author=Noam Chomsky|year=2009| access-date=25 June 2018}}</ref>
====Raid====
A paratroopers reconnaissance battalion commanded by [[Yaron Finkelman]], supported by tanks and bulldozers crossed the border and penetrated about 250 meters into the Gaza Strip to destroy the tunnel.<ref>Yiftah S. Shapir and Gal Perl Finkel, [http://www.inss.org.il/uploadImages/systemFiles/Subterranean%20Warfare_%20A%20New-Old%20Challenge.pdf Subterranean Warfare: A New-Old Challenge], a chapter inside "''The Lessons of Operation Protective Edge''", eds. Anat Kurz and Shlomo Brom, [[Institute for National Security Studies (Israel)|INSS]], 2014.</ref> A firefight broke out, in which one Hamas fighter was killed. Hamas responded with a barrage of mortar and rocket fire at Israeli troops. Three Israeli airstrikes on Hamas mortar and rocket positions then killed five Hamas fighters. According to eyewitnesses, another three Hamas fighters were wounded in an Israeli [[Unmanned combat aerial vehicle|UCAV]] strike over the el-Burejj [[refugee camp]].<ref name="Rockets fired after Gaza clashes" /> Three Israeli soldiers were also wounded during the operation. Hamas said it would take revenge for what it perceived as an act of Israeli aggression that had violated the truce.<ref name="Rockets fired after Gaza clashes">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7709603.stm "Rockets fired after Gaza clashes"], BBC, 5 November 2009</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/01/09/israel-rejected-hamas-cea_n_156639.html?show_comment_id=19558888 |title=Israel Rejected Hamas Ceasefire Offer In December |last=Porter |first=Gareth |date=2009-01-09 |work=Huffington Post |agency=Inter Press Service |access-date=2009-01-23}}</ref> Hamas launched 35 rockets into southern Israel in what was described by Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum as a "response to Israel's massive breach of the truce", stating that "The Israelis began this tension and they must pay an expensive price. They cannot leave us drowning in blood while they sleep soundly in their beds."<ref name=Guardian20091105 /><ref name="hider">{{Cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5089940.ece |newspaper=The Times |access-date=2009-01-08 |date=6 November 2008 |title=Six die in Israeli attack over Hamas 'tunnel under border to kidnap soldier' |author=Hider, James |location=London}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{subscription required}}</ref> The blockade of Gaza was tightened further the following day.<ref name="LeVine"/>
====Immediate repercussions====
The intensity of rocket attacks targeted at Israeli cities near Gaza sharply increased after the 4 November 2008 cross-border IDF attack, approaching pre-truce levels. Clashes between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants also took place along the border, during which 11 Palestinian militants were killed.<ref name="novattacks">{{Cite news |access-date=2009-01-08 |date=15 November 2008 |title=Hamas militants step up rocket attacks |agency=Associated Press |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5158480.ece |work=The Times |location=London}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{subscription required}}</ref> According to [[Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America|CAMERA]], in the period between 4 November incident and mid-December, more than 200 Qassam rockets and mortar shells landed in the western Negev region, most fired immediately after the 4 November tunnel raid by the IDF, and thereafter decreasing to a "few per day".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.camera.org/article/timeline-and-causes-of-operation-cast-lead-in-gaza/|title=Timeline and Causes of "Operation Cast Lead" In Gaza|author=Unspecified CAMERA staff|publisher=CAMERA|year=2009| access-date=29 June 2018}}</ref> Israel had frequently shut down the crossings in response to rocket attacks on its towns.<ref name=sofer/>
===December repercussions===
On 13 December, Israel announced that it favored extending the cease-fire, provided Hamas adhered to the conditions.<ref name=sofer>{{Cite news |last=Sofer |first=Roni |title=Israel in favor of extending Gaza lull |publisher=Ynetnews |access-date=27 December 2008 |date=13 December 2008 |url=https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3637877,00.html}}</ref> On 14 December, a Hamas delegation in Cairo proposed that Hamas was prepared to stop all rocket attacks against Israel if the Israelis would open up the Gaza border crossings and pledge not to launch attacks in Gaza,<ref>[http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=45350 "Israel Rejected Hamas Ceasefire Offer in December"], IPS, 9 January 2009 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091224140711/http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=45350 |date=24 December 2009 }}</ref> as per the original June 2008 truce terms, to that date not complied with by Israel.<ref name=HoC/> On the same day, Hamas officials said that earlier reports, quoting Khaled Meshaal as saying there would be no renewal of the truce, were inaccurate. A Hamas spokesman said that the lull would not be renewed, "as long as there is no real Israeli commitment to all of its conditions".<ref name="Gaza-Israel truce in jeopardy">[http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2008/12/2008121414433365449.html "Gaza-Israel truce in jeopardy"], Al Jazeera, 15 December 2009</ref> A spokesman for the Israeli Prime Minister replied that Israel was committed to the truce but "it's clear there can't be a one-sided ceasefire, ... where rockets are everyday coming from the Gaza Strip targeting Israeli civilians."<ref name="Gaza-Israel truce in jeopardy" />
On 15 December, Israel assassinated a senior Palestinian commander in [[Jenin]], sparking a round of attacks between Israel and Hamas.<ref>{{cite news|title=The War on Gaza, 2008–2009|url=https://www.palquest.org/en/highlight/29896/war-gaza-2008%E2%80%932009|publisher=[[PalQuest]]}}</ref>
On 17 December, a 40-year-old Palestinian was killed by IDF fire in Northern Gaza.<ref name=harel>{{Cite news |last=Harel |first=Amos |author2=Avi Issacharoff |author3=Barak Ravid |title=Hamas declares end to cease-fire, Israeli gov't sources fear violence is unavoidable |work=Haaretz |access-date=27 December 2008 |date=19 December 2008 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/hamas-declares-end-to-cease-fire-israeli-gov-t-sources-fear-violence-is-unavoidable-1.259846}}</ref> The following day, 18 December, Hamas declared the end of the cease-fire, a day before the truce officially expired.<ref name="TIMELINE - Israeli-Hamas violence since truce ended">[https://web.archive.org/web/20100924052547/http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE50423320090105 "TIMELINE – Israeli-Hamas violence since truce ended"], Reuters, 5 January 2009</ref> More than 20 rockets were fired from Gaza into southern Israel on that day.<ref name="Hamas says it will not renew ceasefire">[https://web.archive.org/web/20100601132632/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5367679.ece "Hamas says it will not renew ceasefire"] ''The Times'' 19 December 2008{{subscription required}}</ref>
On 19 December, Hamas refused to enter talks to renew the six-month truce and a Hamas spokesman announced that it would not extend the cease-fire.<ref name=harel/><ref name="Hamas says it will not renew ceasefire" /> The spokesman, Ayman Taha, specified that Hamas's refusal was "because the enemy did not abide by its obligations" to ease a crippling blockade of the Gaza Strip, and had not halted all attacks.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-israel-ceasefire/hamas-declares-end-to-ceasefire-with-israel-in-gaza-idUSLI75623220081218|title=Hamas declares end to ceasefire with Israel in Gaza|author=Nidal al-Mughrabi|publisher=Reuters|year=2008| access-date=29 June 2008}}</ref> Palestinian sources said that Hamas wanted to renew the truce, but only on improved terms – a complete opening of the border crossings with Israel, the opening of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, a complete ban on Israeli military activity in Gaza and an extension of the truce to the West Bank as well. Israel was not ready to accept these terms.<ref name=harel/> This was confirmed by [[Yuval Diskin]], head of [[Shin Bet]] (Israel's internal security agency), at an [[Cabinet of Israel|Israeli cabinet]] meeting on 21 December. Diskin said he thought Hamas was "interested in continuing the truce, but wants to improve its terms ... it wants us to lift the siege of Gaza, stop attacks, and extend the truce to include the [[West Bank]]".<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7794577.stm |title=Israeli leaders 'to topple Hamas' |date=2008-12-22 |work=BBC News |access-date=2009-01-23}}</ref> Three Qassam rockets fired from the northern Gaza Strip landed in Israel.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3641148,00.html "Lull ends: 3 Qassams hit western Negev"], Ynetnews, 19 December 2008</ref>
On 22 December, Israeli defense minister [[Ehud Barak]] said that his country will not accept the ongoing rocket fire from the Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip, Israeli foreign minister [[Tzipi Livni]], who had supported the truce until recently, suggested that military actions be taken against the Hamas government in Gaza.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-12/22/content_10543536.htm |title=Israeli defense minister: Ongoing rocket fire unacceptable |publisher=Xinhua |date=2008-12-22 |access-date=2010-06-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090208094648/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-12/22/content_10543536.htm |archive-date=8 February 2009 }}</ref>
On 23 December, senior Hamas leader [[Mahmoud al-Zahar]] said that Hamas was willing to renew the cease-fire under the original terms, demanding an Israeli commitment to refrain from any military operation in the Strip and to keep the border crossings open. Speaking with Egyptian newspaper ''al-Ahram'', al-Zahar said that the movement would reassess the situation in Gaza once the 24 hours during which Hamas vowed to halt rocket fire had ended.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3642815,00.html |title=Hamas: Willing to renew truce |last=Nahmias |first=Roee |date=23 December 2008 |newspaper=Yedioth Ahronoth |access-date=2009-03-20 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120527013856/http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3642815,00.html |archive-date=27 May 2012 }}</ref> Despite the temporary ceasefire declared by the armed Palestinian factions, eight Qassam rockets and eight mortar shells hit the Negev.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3643042,00.html "6 Qassams explode in western Negev"], Ynetnews, 23 December 2008</ref><ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3643420,00.html "2 Qassams, 8 mortar shells fired at Negev overnight"] Ynetnews, 24 December 2008</ref> Also that day, [[Israeli Defense Forces]] killed three Palestinian militants, stating they were planting explosives on the border.<ref name=PHRMG>{{cite web |title=The War on Gaza |url=http://www.phrmg.org/The%20War%20on%20Gaza.pdf |publisher=[[Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group]] |access-date=27 November 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100510174311/http://www.phrmg.org/The%20War%20on%20Gaza.pdf |archive-date=10 May 2010}}</ref>
On 24 December, an Israeli airstrike hit a group of militants in the Gaza Strip. An Israeli military spokesman said that the militants had fired mortars at Israel. Palestinian medics said that one Hamas militant was killed in the strike and two other Palestinians were wounded, including a cameraman from Hamas' television station.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE4BM2ZP20081224 |title=Flare-up dims truce hopes along Israel-Gaza border |work=Reuters |date=24 December 2008 |access-date=2009-01-03 |first=Nidal |last=al-Mughrabi |location=Gaza City, PS}}</ref> On that day, Hamas military wing issued a statement saying that it began an operation code-named "Operation Oil Stain". 87 Palestinian mortar shells, [[Katyusha rocket launcher|Katyusha]] and [[Qassam rocket]]s hit the Negev.<ref name=maan>{{Cite news |url=http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=207221 |title=Hamas: 87 shells fired at Israeli targets in 24 hours |date=2008-12-25 |access-date=2009-10-28 |publisher=Ma'an News |location=Bethlehem, PS |archive-date=28 October 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091028165240/http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=207221 }}</ref><ref name=katz>{{Cite news |last=Katz |first=Yaakov |author2=Herb Keinon |title=IDF gets green light to strike Hamas after rocket barrage |work=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=27 December 2008 |date=24 December 2008 |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1229868837971 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081227042105/http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1229868837971&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=27 December 2008 }}</ref> Hamas said that it would expand the "Oil Stain" and put thousands of Israelis "under fire". Hamas said it was ready for the war: "far greater than surrendering to Israeli threats and that they became much more prepared to counter Israeli aggression and to defend themselves than in the past."<ref name=maan/>
On 25 December, after Israel had "wrapped up preparations for a broad offensive", [[Israeli Prime Minister]] [[Ehud Olmert]] delivered a final warning in an interview with the Arabic language satellite channel [[al-Arabiya]]. He said "I am telling them now, it may be the last minute, I'm telling them stop it. We are stronger."<ref>{{Cite news |title=Olmert Delivers 'Last Minute' Warning to Gaza |date=25 December 2008 |url=https://www.foxnews.com/story/olmert-delivers-last-minute-warning-to-gaza |publisher=Fox News |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100919025443/http://www.foxnews.com/story/0%2C2933%2C472856%2C00.html |archive-date=19 September 2010 }}</ref> Another six Qassams landed in southern Israel.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3644086,00.html "6 Qassams land in southern Israel"], Ynetnews, 25 December 2008</ref>
{{Clear}}
==Timeline of the war==
{{Main|Timeline of the Gaza War}}
{{See also|Incidents in the Gaza War}}
===Israeli offensive===
Israel began planning for a military operation as early as six months before the conflict by collecting intelligence on potential targets. The IDF also engaged in a disinformation campaign to give Hamas a false sense of security and to take them by surprise. Defense minister [[Ehud Barak]] stated that the offensive was the result of Israel's "patience running out" over the rocket attacks,<ref>{{Cite news |title=Six months of secret planning – then Israel moves against Hamas |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2008/dec/29/israel-attack-hamas-preparations-repercussions |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |first=Ian |last=Black |date=2008-12-29 |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref><ref name=ravid /> which had been restarted by Hamas after Israel destroyed a tunnel on 4 November.<ref name=Guardian20091105 /><ref name="nyt-truce" /> According to Israeli officials, its subsequent 27 December offensive took Hamas by surprise, thereby increasing militant casualties.<ref name=ravid>{{Cite news |first=Barak |last=Ravid |title=Disinformation, secrecy, and lies: How the Gaza offensive came about |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/disinformation-secrecy-and-lies-how-the-gaza-offensive-came-about-1.260347 |newspaper=Haaretz |date=27 December 2008 |access-date=27 December 2008}}</ref>
====Air strikes====
[[File:Oferet-Yetzuka-F16I.jpg|thumb|Israeli F-16I of the [[107 Squadron (Israel)|107th Squadron]] preparing for [[takeoff]]]]
At 11:30&nbsp;am on 27 December 2008, Israel launched the campaign titled Operation Cast Lead. It began with an opening wave of [[airstrike]]s in which [[F-16]] fighter jets and [[AH-64 Apache]] attack helicopters<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/129052 |title=Operation 'Cast Lead' Begins; One Israeli and 205 Arabs are Dead |publisher=Arutz Sheva |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> simultaneously struck 100 preplanned targets within a span of 220 seconds. There was a 95% success rate with zero misses in the opening attack according to the Israeli Air Force.<ref name="In Gaza, Both Sides Reveal New Gear" /> Thirty minutes later, a second wave of 64 jets and helicopters struck at an additional 60 targets. The air strikes hit Hamas headquarters, government offices and 24 police stations.<ref name="Israeli Arsenal"/><ref name=autogenerated2>{{Cite news |url=http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/09/15/UNFFMGCReport.pdf |title=Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict |publisher=United Nations Human Rights Council |access-date=15 September 2009 |location=London}}</ref> An Israeli [[Unmanned aerial vehicle|UAV]] airstrike on the police headquarters of Gaza City killed 40 people, including several dozen police cadets at their graduation ceremony.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/node/84077/section/3 |title=Precisely Wrong |publisher=Human Rights Watch |date=2009-06-30 |access-date=2010-06-05}}</ref> Approximately 140 members of Hamas were killed, including [[Tawfik Jaber]], head of Gaza's police force.<ref name="JPOST">{{cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel//Article.aspx?id=126519 |title=A year's intel gathering yields 'alpha hits' |last=Katz |first=Yaakov |date=28 December 2008 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=28 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111228030109/http://www.jpost.com/Israel/ |archive-date=28 December 2011 }}</ref><ref name="Reuters1">{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSLR1342320081227 |work=Reuters |date=27 December 2008 |title=Casualties}}</ref> Another estimate puts the death toll of the police academy strike at 225 Hamas militants killed and 750 injured.<ref>Efraim Inbar & Eitan Shamir, [https://besacenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/Mowing-the-Grass-English.pdf 'Mowing the Grass': Israel's Strategy for Protracted Intractable Conflict], [[Journal of Strategic Studies]], 37:1, 65–90 [67, 83]</ref> Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni told reporters that Israel would strike all targets associated with what she called the "illegitimate, terrorist government of Hamas".<ref name="In Gaza, Both Sides Reveal New Gear" />
At least 225–230 Palestinians were killed and more than 700 injured on the first day of air strikes. Civilians, including children, were among the casualties.<ref name="Reuters1" /> Although media reported that most of the dead were "Hamas security forces" or "Hamas operatives",<ref>{{cite news |title=Death toll passes 225 in Israeli offensive on Gaza |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/death-toll-passes-225-in-israeli-offensive-on-gaza-1.707090 |date=27 December 2008 |publisher=CBC News}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.haaretz.com/1.5079054|title=IDF Surprises Hamas With Largest Gaza Operation Since 1967; at Least 225 Killed|first1=Amos|last1=Harel|first2=Avi|last2=Issacharoff|date=28 December 2008|newspaper=Haaretz}}</ref> police officers are, according to [[B'Tselem]], presumed to be civilians and likely not legitimate objects of attack under international humanitarian law.<ref name=BTselem_explanation>B'Tselem, [http://www.btselem.org/statistics/casualties_clarifications "Explanation of statistics on fatalities"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140327212440/http://www.btselem.org/statistics/casualties_clarifications |date=27 March 2014 }}.</ref> Human rights groups critically note that the attacks began around the time children were leaving school.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/israelopt-immediate-access-humanitarian-workers-and-observers-essential-20081231 |title=Israel/OPT: Immediate access to humanitarian workers and observers essential |publisher=Amnesty International |date=2008-12-31 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> The Israeli attack was the deadliest one-day death toll in 60 years of conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians, a day that was called the "Massacre of Black Saturday" by Palestinians in Gaza.<ref name="Alarabiya1">[http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2008/12/27/62895.html "At least 205 killed as Israeli pounds Gaza"], [[Alarabiya]], 27 December 2008</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110429082825/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5404501.ece "Israeli jets kill 'at least 225' in strikes on Gaza"] ''The Times'' 2008-12-28{{subscription required}}</ref> Hamas responded with a rocket barrage on Southern Israel, and Palestinian factions in the Gaza Strip kept Southern Israel under constant rocket fire during the entire war. [[Beersheba]] suffered two rocket attacks, the farthest Palestinian rockets had ever reached. Palestinian rocket fire killed three Israeli civilians and one soldier in the early days of the conflict.<ref name="Timeline">{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7812290.stm |title=Gaza conflict: Timeline |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-18 |access-date=2010-06-05}}</ref>
In the weeks following the initial air raids [[F-16I]]s and [[AH-64 Apache]]s continued to target Hamas facilities while also inflicting severe damage to Palestinian infrastructure.<ref name='azcentral.com4Jan2009'>{{Cite news |first=Ibrahim |last=Barzak |author2=Jason Keyser |title=Israeli troops, tanks slice deep into Gaza |date=2009-01-04 |publisher=azcentral.com |agency=Associated Press |url=https://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2009/01/04/20090104gaza0124.html |access-date=2009-02-18}}</ref> Israel used the 2000-pound [[Mark 84 bomb|Mark 84]] [[Joint Direct Attack Munition]] to attack buildings and tunnels along the Gaza-Sinai border. The 500-pound variant was used against underground bunkers.<ref name="In Gaza, Both Sides Reveal New Gear" /> Israel also used the new PB500A1 laser-guided hard-target penetration bomb, which was developed by [[Israel Military Industries]], and is based on the 1000-pound [[Mark 83 bomb|Mark 83]]. There were unconfirmed reports of the IAF also using the [[GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb]] for the first time.<ref name='Aviation Week 2009-05-11'>{{cite news |url=http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=defense&id=news/GAZA031109.xml |title=New Tactics Yield Solid Victory in Gaza |access-date=2009-07-03 |last=Eshel |first=David |date=2009-05-11 |work=Aviation Week |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110614203423/http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/generic/story_channel.jsp?channel=defense&id=news%2FGAZA031109.xml |archive-date=14 June 2011 }}</ref> Israeli aircraft also used synthetic aperture radar [[targeting pods]] and high-resolution imaging pods.<ref name="In Gaza, Both Sides Reveal New Gear" /> After being grounded six months prior, the Israeli fleet of [[AH-1 Cobra|AH-1F Cobra]] helicopter gunships were rushed back into service for the operation.<ref name="IPS Arsenal" />
According to the IAF, 80% of the bombs used by the IAF were precision weapons, and 99% of the air strikes hit their targets.<ref name="Examining the Conduct of IDF Operations in Gaza">{{Cite news |title=Examining the Conduct of IDF Operations in Gaza |url=http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/templateC05.php?CID=3034 |publisher=The Washington Institute for Near East Policy |date=27 March 2009}}</ref> A study by the [[Center for Strategic and International Studies]] points out that when possible, IAF executed strikes using the smallest precision-guided weapons, and coordinated air strikes and the use of artillery weapons using GPS, in a systematic effort to limit collateral damage.<ref name="AnthonyHCordesman" /> In a 2009 interview, Major General [[Ido Nehushtan]] said that the only use of non-[[precision-guided munition]]s from the Israeli Air Force was in open areas.<ref name='DefenseNews 2009-03-08'/> He went on to say: "We had to find ways to do things as precisely and proportionately as possible, while focusing on how to differentiate between terrorists and uninvolved civilians."<ref name='DefenseNews 2009-03-08'/>
The IDF also targeted homes of Hamas commanders, noting: "Destruction of hundreds of Hamas leaders' homes [is] one of the keys to the offensive's success. The homes serve as weapons warehouses and headquarters, and shelling them has seriously hindered Hamas capabilities."<ref name=Ynet_IDF_Ponders_Response>{{cite news |title=IDF ponders response to rocket fire |date=18 January 2009 |author=Hanan Greenberg |publisher=[[Ynetnews]] |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3658356,00.html}}</ref> Several high-ranking Hamas commanders were killed, including [[Nizar Rayan]], [[Abu Zakaria al-Jamal]], and Jamal Mamduch. Hamas leaders often died along with their families in their homes. According to a Hamas spokesperson and Rayyan's son, the IDF warned Rayan, by contacting his cell phone, that an attack on his house was imminent.<ref name="Independent">{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/profile-of-a-professor-who-was-prepared-for-martyrdom-1221114.html |title=Profile of a professor who was prepared for martyrdom |date=2009-01-02 |newspaper=The Independent |access-date=2009-01-04 |location=London |first1=Said |last1=Ghazali |first2=Donald |last2=MacIntyre |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090105030307/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/profile-of-a-professor-who-was-prepared-for-martyrdom-1221114.html |archive-date=5 January 2009}}</ref><ref name =telegraph_rayan>{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4061004/Hardline-Hamas-leader-killed-in-air-strike-on-Gaza-home.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4061004/Hardline-Hamas-leader-killed-in-air-strike-on-Gaza-home.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Hardline Hamas leader killed in air strike on Gaza home |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=1 January 2009 |access-date=2009-01-02 |location=London |first=Tim |last=Butcher}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Israel alleged that Hamas leaders hid in the basements of the Shifa Hospital complex in Gaza City in the [[Human shields in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict|belief that they would be protected by human shields]].<ref name="shifa"/> Hamas Interior Minister [[Said Seyam]], Hamas Interior Ministry Security Director Saleh Abu Sharkh, and local Hamas militia leader Mahmoud Abu Watfah were killed on 15 January in an Israeli airstrike in [[Jabalia]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=xzM-CgAAQBAJ&pg=PT67&lpg=PT67&dq=%22Said+Seyam%22+%22Saleh+Abu+Sharkh%22 Jihad in Palestine: Political Islam and the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict], Shaul Bartal, Routledge, footnote 98</ref>
[[File:Orphanschoolmosque.jpg|thumb|left|Destroyed building in [[Rafah]], 12 January 2009]]
Among IDF's measures to reduce civilian casualties were the extensive use of leaflets and phone messages to warn Palestinians, including families in high-risk areas and families of Hamas personnel, to leave the area or to avoid potential targets.<ref name="AnthonyHCordesman" /><ref name="IDFphones">{{Cite news |newspaper=Haaretz |agency=Associated Press |title=IDF phones Gaza residents to warn them of imminent strikes |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-phones-gaza-residents-to-warn-them-of-imminent-strikes-1.267350 |date=2 January 2009}}</ref><ref name=nytimestraps>{{Cite news |title=Gaza War Full of Traps and Trickery |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/11/world/middleeast/11hamas.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=11 January 2009 |first=Steven |last=Erlanger |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref> Israel used A-4 Skyhawks to deliver more than 2&nbsp;million leaflets urging the population to evacuate.<ref name='DefenseNews 2009-03-08'>{{cite news |url=http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4216231&c=FEA&s=INT |title=Maj. Gen. Ido Nehushtan |access-date=2009-08-04 |last=Opall-Rome |first=Barbara |date=2009-03-08 |work=Defense News}} {{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> In a practice codenamed [[roof knocking]], the IDF issued warning calls before air strikes on civilian buildings. Typically, Israeli intelligence officers and [[Shin Bet]] security servicemen contacted residents of a building in which they suspected storage of military assets and told them that they had 10–15 minutes to flee the attack.<ref name="In Gaza, Both Sides Reveal New Gear">"> {{Cite news |title=In Gaza, Both Sides Reveal New Gear |url=http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=3885990 |work=Defense News |date=5 January 2009 }} {{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref name="jpost">{{Cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Op-EdContributors/Article.aspx?id=128307 |title=A response to a Euro-Mediterranean appeal |date=2009-01-04 |last=Kurz |first=Anat N. |author2=Emily B. Landau |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2009-01-10 }} [https://web.archive.org/web/20090121191829/http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231167305954&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull Archived version 2009-01-29]</ref><ref name="haretz-rk">{{Cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/idf-targets-senior-hamas-figures-1.267312 |title=IDF targets senior Hamas figures |date=2009-01-04 |last=Harel |first=Amos |author2=Yoav Stern |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=2009-01-09}}</ref> At several instances, the IDF has also used a sound bomb to warn civilians before striking homes.<ref name="IDFphones" /> In some cases, IDF commanders called off airstrikes, when residents of suspected houses have been able to gather on its roof.<ref name="IDFphones" /> IAF developed small bomb that is designed not to explode as it was aimed at empty areas of the roofs to frighten residents into leaving the building.<ref name="AnthonyHCordesman" /><ref name=nytimestraps/> Israel's military used low-explosive missiles to warn civilians of imminent attack and to verify that buildings were evacuated before attacks.<ref name='DefenseNews 2009-03-08'/> Some of the attacks took place sooner than the warning suggested and many calls were not followed up with attacks.<ref name="ocha_report_1_2"/>
By 3 January 2009, the Palestinian death toll stood at 400, with 25% estimated to be civilian casualties.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7809699.stm |title=Israel steps up offensive on Gaza |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-03 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> The air offensive continued throughout the ground invasion that followed, and as of 15 January Israeli forces had carried out 2,360 air strikes.<ref name=Sengupta1501>{{Cite news |title=Civilian casualties: Human rights groups accuse Israelis of war crimes |author=Donald Macintyre and Kim Sengupta |date=15 January 2009 |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/civilian-casualties-human-rights-groups-accuse-israelis-of-war-crimes-1366727.html |work=The Independent |location=London}}</ref> No safe haven or bomb shelters existed, making this one of the rare conflicts where civilians had no place to flee.<ref name="ocha_report_1_7">{{Cite news |title=Situation Report From The Humanitarian Coordinator – January 7, 2009, 1700 hours |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/documentsocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_07_english.pdf |date=2009-01-07 |agency=[[UN]] [[Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |access-date=2009-01-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109094839/http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_07_english.pdf |archive-date=9 January 2009 }}</ref>
====Naval operations====
The [[Israeli Navy]] attacked Hamas' rocket launchers and outposts, command and control centers, a Hamas patrol boat, and the office of Hamas Prime Minister [[Ismail Haniyeh]], using the [[Typhoon Weapon System]] and [[Surface to surface missile]]s.<ref>[http://www.dover.idf.il/IDF/English/News/the_Front/09/01/0101.htm Dover.idf.il] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090522041335/http://www.dover.idf.il/IDF/English/News/the_Front/09/01/0101.htm |date=22 May 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Amos Harel |url=http://www.haaretz.co.il/news/politics/1.1370337 |title=מבצע "עופרת יצוקה": תקיפת חיל הים ברצועת עזה: כך זה נראה |language=he |trans-title=Operation 'Cast Lead': Israeli Navy attacks on the Gaza Strip: So it seems |newspaper=Haaretz |date=2008-12-29 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> The navy coordinated with other Israeli forces and used powerful shipboard sensors to acquire and shell targets on land.<ref name="In Gaza, Both Sides Reveal New Gear" /><ref name='DefenseNews 2009-05-11'/> Records of the attacks published by the navy indicate that for the first time vessels were equipped with [[Spike (missile)|Spike ER]] electro-optically guided anti-armor missiles. Videos of an attack showed precision hits from a Typhoon stabilizing gun despite a rolling sea. Versions of the Spike were also used by ground units<ref name='Aviation Week 2009-05-11'/> and possibly by helicopters or [[unmanned aerial vehicle]]s.<ref>[https://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSLU55228 "Human Rights Watch accuses Israel over Gaza drones"], Reuters, 30 June 2009</ref> [[Shayetet 13]] naval [[commando]]s were also deployed to attack targets on land,<ref name="Haaretz 2009-01-15">{{Cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/hamas-launches-first-phosphorus-rocket-at-negev-no-injuries-reported-1.268159 |title=Hamas launches first phosphorus rocket at Negev; no injuries reported |last=Yagna |first=Yanir |author2=Ashkenazi, Eli |author3=Pfeffer, Anshel |date=15 January 2009 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=5 May 2010}}</ref> and reportedly attacked an [[Iran]]ian ship loaded with arms for Hamas, which was docking in [[Sudan]].<ref>{{cite news |date=2009-04-08 |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L3699142,00.html |title=Report: Naval commando forces involved in Sudan strike |newspaper=Ynetnews |access-date=2014-08-17}}</ref> On 28 December, Naval vessels shelled the [[Port of Gaza]].<ref name="Timeline"/>
On 29 December, the [[Free Gaza Movement]] relief boat ''Dignity'' carrying volunteer doctors with 3.5 tons of medical supplies, human rights activists (Among them [[Caoimhe Butterly]] and former [[United States Representative|US Representative]] [[Cynthia McKinney]]), and a [[CNN]] reporter was involved in an altercation with Israeli patrol boats. The captain of the Free Gaza vessel said that their vessel had been rammed intentionally and that there had been no warning before it had been rammed.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7805075.stm |title=Gaza aid boat 'rammed by Israel' |work=BBC News |date=2008-12-30 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> An Israeli spokesman disputed this, and said the collision was caused by the ''Dignity'' attempting to outmaneuver the patrol boats after disobeying Israeli orders to turn back.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://edition.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/12/30/gaza.aid.boat/index.html |title=Gaza relief boat damaged in encounter with Israeli vessel |publisher=CNN |date=2008-12-30 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
On 4 January the Israeli Navy extended its blockade of the Gaza Strip to 20 nautical miles.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2009/01/20091322357629723.html |title=Israeli ground troops enter Gaza |publisher=Al Jazeera |date=2009-01-04 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
Throughout the war, the Israeli Navy employed [[Sa'ar 4.5 class missile boat]]s of [[Shayetet 3]] and [[Super Dvora Mk III class patrol boat]]s of the [[Shayetet 15#Squadron 916|Squadron 916]].
====Ground invasion====
{{See also|2009 Ibrahim al-Maqadna Mosque strike|Zeitoun killings}}
[[File:Gazasmoke.JPG|thumb|Explosion in Gaza, 12 January 2009<ref name="War On Gaza Day 17">{{Cite news |url=http://cc.aljazeera.net/node/30 |title=War On Gaza Day 17 |date=2009-12-01 |publisher=Al Jazeera |language=ar |access-date=19 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090217182827/http://cc.aljazeera.net/node/30 |archive-date=17 February 2009}}</ref>]]
[[File:Samouni2.jpg|thumb|Damage to the Zeitoun neighbourhood]]
On the evening of 3 January, Israel began the ground operation with a massive [[artillery]] barrage all along the Gaza boundary, and ground forces were sent into Gaza for the first time since the start of the conflict.<ref name="Time January 3, 2009">
{{Cite news |first=Aaron |last=Klein |url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1869441,00.html?iid=tsmodule |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111208092835/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1869441,00.html?iid=tsmodule |archive-date=8 December 2011 |title=Israel Enters Gaza: Negotiating with Extreme Prejudice |date=2009-01-03 |access-date=2010-05-17 |magazine=Time}}
</ref><ref name="haaretz-groundInvasion">
{{cite news |first=Amos |last=Harel |author2=Yanir Yagna |author3=Yoav Stern |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/palestinians-mother-4-children-killed-in-idf-gaza-offensive-1.267361 |title=Palestinians: Mother, 4 children killed in IDF Gaza offensive |date=3 January 2009 |access-date=2009-01-03 |newspaper=Haaretz}}
</ref><ref name="ynet_ground_troops_started">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3649729,00.html |title=IDF enters Gaza; dozens of terrorists hurt |access-date=2009-01-03 |date=2009-01-03 |first=Hanan |last=Greenberg}}</ref> The ground invasion, termed the 'second stage' of Operation Cast Lead, sought to control open areas and encircle towns and refugee camps from which militants continued to launch rockets, but not penetrate densely populated areas.<ref name="Israeli Arsenal"/>
The [[Paratroopers Brigade|Paratroopers]], [[Golani Brigade|Golani]], and [[Givati Brigade|Givati]] brigades simultaneously entered the Gaza Strip from several unexpected directions to avoid reported [[booby trap]]s while also outflanking opposing forces. The [[401st Brigade (IDF)|401st Armored Brigade]] used [[Merkava|Merkava Mark IV]] tanks to quickly block access from Rafah and Khan Yunis to Gaza City, cutting supply lines to Hamas from the south.<ref name='Aviation Week 2009-05-11'/> The move put psychological pressure on Hamas while also forcing combatants to withdraw from the front line. Israeli forces took strategic hilltops to better control areas.<ref name="Time January 3, 2009"/>
[[File:Flickr - Israel Defense Forces - Weapons Found in a Mosque During Cast Lead (2).jpg|thumb|upright|Weapons found in a mosque during Operation Cast Lead, according to the IDF]]
The Israeli advance was spearheaded by [[Combat Engineering Corps]] sappers opening routes and allowing the ground forces to advance while dismantling booby traps set up in great numbers by Hamas, often set to detonate upon entry to a building. [[Improvised explosive device]]s (IED) were a concern for Israeli soldiers.<ref name="Belfast Telegraph 2010-02-04">{{Cite news |url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/israeli-commander-we-rewrote-the-rules-of-war-for-gaza-14665546.html |title=Israeli commander: 'We rewrote rules of war for Gaza conflict' |last=Macintrye |first=Donald |date=4 February 2010 |work=The Belfast Telegraph |access-date=6 March 2010 |location=Jerusalem}}</ref> One Israeli commander said that booby traps were found in a mosque and one-third of the houses. He said that some of the traps were designed to assist in taking IDF soldiers captive. All such attempts failed.<ref name="jpost.com"/><ref name="NY Times 2009-01-16">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/world/middleeast/16gaza.html |title=Israel Lets Reporters See Devastated Gaza Site and Image of a Confident Militrary |last=Bronner |first=Ethan |date=16 January 2009 |work=The New York Times |access-date=6 March 2010}}</ref> The IDF used [[IDF Caterpillar D9|D9 armored bulldozers]] to ensure that paths were cleared of IEDs. These bulldozers were also used to destroy tunnels. The unmanned, remote-controlled version of the D9 (called Black Thunder) were also used. In one case an armored D9 knocked down a door, which triggered an explosion of a building full of explosive on top of the D9. The D9 survived the explosion and building's collapse. [[Combat engineer]]s that inspected the rubbles found a tunnel, cache of weapons and remains of a [[suicide bomber]].<ref>Tal Zagraba [http://www.handasa.org.il/show_item.asp?levelId=64757&itemId=220 "Teddybears Tales" סיפורי דובים] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20130619215508/http://www.handasa.org.il/show_item.asp?levelId=64757&itemId=220 |date=19 June 2013 }}, [[BaMachane]] and Official [[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]] [[Combat Engineering Corps]] (in [[Hebrew]])</ref>{{Third-party inline|date=April 2024|reason=The reference is from the Israeli Combat Engineering Corps; additional verification is needed.}} Viper miniature robots were deployed by Israeli forces for the first time. These were used for various tasks including the disabling of IEDs. Along with blocking mobile phone communication, the IDF employed electronic jamming equipment to disable remote operated explosives.<ref name="IPS Arsenal">{{Cite journal |last=Esposito |first=Michele K. |date=Spring 2000 |title=Israeli Arsenal Deployed Against Gaza During Operation Cast Lead |journal=Journal of Palestine Studies |publisher=Institute for Palestine Studies |volume=XXXVIII |issue=3 |pages=175–91 |issn=1533-8614 |url=http://www.palestine-studies.org/files/pdf/jps/10341.pdf |access-date=6 March 2010 |doi=10.1525/jps.2009.xxxviii.3.175 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928203037/http://www.palestine-studies.org/files/pdf/jps/10341.pdf |archive-date=28 September 2011}}</ref> Among others, The IDF used the new Bull Island system for the first time to identify booby traps in buildings. Bull Island uses a camera shaped like a tennis ball that can be thrown into a building to transfer 360-degree imagery to the troops outside of the structure.<ref name="Israeli Arsenal"/><ref name="Aviation Week 2009-02-23">{{Cite news |url=http://www.aviationweek.com/aw/blogs/defense/index.jsp?plckController=Blog&plckScript=blogScript&plckElementId=blogDest&plckBlogPage=BlogViewPost&plckPostId=Blog%3A27ec4a53-dcc8-42d0-bd3a-01329aef79a7Post%3A224d5653-f53f-4928-9393-082e52c78f32 |title=Israel unleashed Bulls and Matadors on Gaza |last=Wall |first=Robert |date=23 February 2009 |work=Aviation Week |access-date=5 May 2010}}</ref>
Israeli artillery units worked closely with battalion commanders.<ref name='DefenseNews 2009-05-11'>{{Cite news |first=Barbara |last=Opall-Rome |title=Gaza War Is Battle Lab for Joint Combat Ops |date=2009-05-11 |url=http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4083045 |work=Defense News |access-date=2009-08-06}} {{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> For the first time, the Sheder Ham digitized data, mapping, and command-and-control system linked the Artillery Corps into the Army's overall C4I network.<ref name="IPS Arsenal" />
The [[Oketz Unit]], the IDF's dog-handling corps, performed 33 successful missions during the war, with specially trained sniffer and attack dogs and their handlers leading advancing forces. In every mission that involved Oketz dogs, there were no casualties among soldiers. Three dogs were killed by enemy fire during the war.<ref>Buhbut, Amir: "With bared teeth: Oketz dogs to catch stone throwers". ''[[Maariv (newspaper)|Maariv]]''</ref>
Israeli ground troops entered Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza in the early hours of 4 January.<ref name="aljazeera4jan">[http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/01/20091322357629723.html "Israeli ground troops enter Gaza"], Al Jazeera English. 2009-01-04</ref> Israeli forces reportedly bisected Gaza and surrounded [[Gaza City]].<ref name="haaretz-groundInvasion" /> The IDF stated that it had targeted forty sites, including weapons depots and rocket launch sites. The Israeli military said that 50 Hamas fighters were killed and dozens more wounded.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3650496,00.html |title=He wanted to protect people |publisher=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> At least 25 Palestinian rockets were fired into Southern Israel, wounding a woman in [[Sderot]].<ref name="Timeline"/>
As Israeli tanks and troops seized control of large parts of the Gaza Strip, tens of thousands of Gazans fled their homes amid artillery and gunfire, and flooded into the inner parts of Gaza city.<ref>{{Cite news |last=McCarthy |first=Rory |title=Thousands flee guns and shells as Israel tightens grip on Gaza |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jan/05/israel-palestine-gaza-attacks |date=2009-01-05 |work=The Guardian |location=London}}</ref> On 5 January, IDF forces began operating in the densely populated urban centers of Gaza. Gun battles broke out between the IDF and Hamas on the streets of Gaza as the IDF surrounded the city.<ref name=reutersjan5>{{Cite news |title=Israel presses on with Gaza attack |date=2009-01-05 |publisher=Reuters}}</ref><ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jan/05/israel-palestine-gaza-attacks1 "Israeli troops and Hamas fighters clash in Gaza City"] ''[[The Guardian]]''. 2009-01-05.</ref> IDF combat units were sent in to capture Hamas fighters, and were met with grenades and mortar fire. The Israeli military said that 80–100 Hamas fighters were killed and 100 captured during heavy ground fighting. Some 40 rockets and mortar shells were fired at Israel, injuring four civilians.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3651124,00.html |title=Hamas adamant to strike back at IDF |publisher=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
[[File:Hamas Hides Launcher in Mosque During Cast Lead.jpg|thumb|upright|IDF forces discover weapons in a mosque during Operation Cast Lead in the Gaza Strip.]]
On 6 January, heavy fighting took place between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants on the outskirts of the northern district of Gaza City, while Israeli helicopter gunships pounded militant positions. The IDF reportedly widened its attacks to [[Khan Yunis]] in southern Gaza, after heavy fighting on the edges of [[Deir al-Balah]] in central Gaza.<ref name="Timeline"/> The [[Al-Fakhura school incident|Al Fakhura school]] was hit by Israeli mortar fire, and reports on deaths and if militants were among the casualties varied.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/victorious-but-vilified-israel-has-destroyed-its-image-and-its-soul-1418920.html |work=The Independent |location=London |title=Victorious, but vilified: Israel has 'destroyed its image and its soul' |first=Kim |last=Sengupta |date=2009-01-18 |access-date=2010-04-01}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/06/content_10614759.htm |title=Israeli army strikes Gaza's UN School, 40 killed: Medics |publisher=Xinhua |date=2009-01-06 |access-date=2010-07-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110503160640/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/06/content_10614759.htm |archive-date=3 May 2011 }}</ref><ref name="jpost_idf_releases">{{cite news |last=Katz |first=Yaakov |title=IDF releases names of UN school deaths |date=2009-02-19 |newspaper=[[The Jerusalem Post]] |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=133506 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240524231645/https://www.webcitation.org/5rQKyAmQH?url=http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/65032/-idf-releases-names-of-un-school-deaths.html |archive-date=24 May 2024 |url-status=live |access-date=6 June 2012 }}</ref> The attack was originally reported as being on the school.<ref>{{cite news |title=Strike at Gaza school 'kills 40' |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7814054.stm |access-date=28 September 2010 |date=7 January 2009 |work=BBC News}} Updated February 2009</ref> In northern Gaza City, Palestinian gunmen ambushed an Israeli patrol, killing one soldier and wounding four. The patrol returned fire, hitting some of the gunmen,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3651665,00.html |title=6th soldier killed in Gaza operation |publisher=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2010-06-05}}</ref> while in [[Jabalya]], an Israeli tank fired a shell into an abandoned building as [[Golani Brigade]] soldiers were taking cover in it, killing 3 soldiers and wounding 24. The casualties were extracted under the cover of heavy artillery fire and helicopters dropping illumination bombs.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3651165,00.html |title=Gaza: 3 soldiers killed, 24 injured in friendly fire incident |newspaper=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2012-10-07|last1=Greenberg |first1=Hanan }}</ref> In a separate friendly fire incident, an Israeli officer was killed by a misdirected artillery shell. In all, at least 70 Palestinians and 5 Israelis were killed on 6 January.<ref name="Timeline"/>
====Arms interdiction and the Sudan strike====
{{Main|2009 Sudan airstrikes}}
In January and February 2009, there was a series of two air strikes in [[Sudan]] and one in the [[Red Sea]] allegedly conducted by Israel against a convoy of 17 trucks containing [[Iran]]ian arms, possibly [[Fajr-3 (artillery rocket)|Fajr-3]] artillery rockets, being smuggled to the Gaza Strip through Sudan. A total of 39 were reported killed, with Iranian Revolutionary Guard operatives possibly among the dead.<ref>{{cite news |title=Exclusive: Three Israeli Airstrikes Against Sudan |url=http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalradar/2009/03/exclusive-three.html |work=ABC News |date=2009-03-27 |access-date=2009-03-28}}</ref><ref name=haaretz0328>{{cite news |title=Report: Israel carried out 3 attacks on Sudan arms smugglers |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/report-israel-carried-out-3-attacks-on-sudan-arms-smugglers-1.273055 |agency=Haaretz Service and The Associated Press |newspaper=Haaretz |date=2009-03-28 |access-date=2009-03-28}}</ref> The attack was widely reported to have been conducted by Israeli aircraft, while the Israeli government hinted that it was behind the attack.<ref>{{cite web |last=Wood |first=Paul |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7966865.stm |title=Africa &#124; Did Israel carry out Sudan strike? |work=BBC News |date=2009-03-26 |access-date=2014-08-17}}</ref> Naval commandos from the elite [[Shayetet 13]] unit were reportedly involved in the operation, which included an attack on an Iranian arms ship docking in [[Port Sudan]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3699142,00.html |title=Report: Naval commando forces involved in Sudan strike |newspaper=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2012-10-07}}</ref>
====Attack on Gaza City====
[[File:GazaWPshelling.gif|thumbnail|[[White phosphorus munitions|White phosphorus]] artillery shell exploding over Gaza City on the 11 January]]
On 7 January, Israel carried out 40 airstrikes overnight. Dozens of other targets were attacked by aircraft and artillery during the day, and the Gaza-Egypt border was bombed after Israeli aircraft dropped leaflets onto [[Rafah]], urging the residents to leave. A total of 20 Palestinians were killed. A total of 20 rockets were fired into Southern Israel.<ref name="Timeline"/> Israel temporarily halted its attacks for three hours to provide a "humanitarian respite".<ref name="Al Jazeera Timeline"/> In Central Gaza, a force of IDF soldiers entered a building near the Kissfum crossing. As the force entered, Hamas fighters fired an anti-tank rocket at them, killing one Israeli officer and wounding one soldier. Israeli aircraft also hit more than 40 Hamas targets in Gaza.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7822786.stm |title=Israel is 'nearing Gaza goals' |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-11 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Israeli troops shot and killed Hamas commander Amir Mansi and wounded two other Hamas fighters as they operated a mortar.<ref>''[[Haaretz]]'' – IDF: Hamas men beginning to desert; army steps up Gaza op.</ref>
On 11 January, the IDF started the third stage of the operation with an attack on the suburbs of [[Gaza City]]. Israeli forces pushed into the south of the city and reached a key junction to its north. During their advance, Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters ambushed Israeli troops at several locations, and heavy fighting ensued, in which 40 Hamas and Islamic Jihad fighters were killed.<ref name="JPOST" /> Additionally, the IAF reported that Hamas operatives had tried to shoot down an IAF plane with [[Anti-Aircraft|anti-aircraft missiles]] for the first time since operations in Gaza began. Heavy machine gun fire against helicopters had also been unsuccessful.<ref name=haaretz-Hamas-fired-missiles>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/sources-hamas-fired-anti-aircraft-missiles-at-iaf-planes-1.267905 |title=Sources: Hamas fired anti-aircraft missiles at IAF planes |newspaper=Haaretz |author=Amos Harel |date=11 January 2009 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> Two Hamas fighters were killed by an Israeli airstrike in the Southern Gaza Strip. A Palestinian woman was also killed by Israeli artillery fire.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7822623.stm |title=Gaza hit by new Israeli strikes |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-11 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Israeli forces continued to push deeper into heavily populated areas around Gaza City. Fierce clashes were reported in the Southern suburb of [[Sheikh Ijlin|Sheikh Ajleen]].<ref name="Timeline"/>
[[File:Day 18 of War on Gaza.PNG|thumb|[[Palestinian people|Palestinians]] in a Gaza city neighbourhood on Day 18 of the War in Gaza<ref>{{cite news |url=http://cc.aljazeera.net/asset/language/arabic/war-gaza-day-18 |title=War On Gaza Day 18 |date=2009-01-13 |publisher=[[Al Jazeera Arabic|Al Jazeera]] |language=ar |access-date=2009-01-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090119062732/http://cc.aljazeera.net/asset/language/arabic/war-gaza-day-18 |archive-date=19 January 2009}}</ref>]]
On 13 January, Israeli tanks continued their advance toward the headquarters of Hamas' preventive security building from the al-Karramah neighborhood in the northwest and the [[Tel al-Hawa]] neighborhood in the northeast. The Israeli Army also said that 25 mortars and rockets were fired into Southern Israel.<ref name="Timeline"/><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/13/israel.gaza/index.html |title=3 rockets fall in northern Israel; Gaza fighting continues |publisher=CNN |date=2009-01-14 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Before dawn, during the night, Israeli troops and tanks supported by artillery and helicopters advanced 300 metres into Tel al-Hawa, a neighborhood with several high-rise buildings, while Israeli gunboats shelled Hamas targets along the coast.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}} As troops entered the narrow streets, heavy street fighting with militants ensued leaving three Israeli soldiers wounded and 30 Hamas militants dead or wounded, according to the IDF. By morning IDF soldiers were still advancing slowly towards the city center and several buildings were in flames in Tel al-Hawa, where most of the fighting took place. Five Israeli soldiers were wounded during clashes with militants, and an officer was severely wounded by an explosion inside a booby-trapped building.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-officer-critically-hurt-in-gaza-6-other-soldiers-also-wounded-1.268054 |newspaper=Haaretz |title=IDF officer critically hurt in Gaza; 6 other soldiers also wounded |author=Anshel Pfeffer |date=13 January 2012 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> The push into the neighborhood was Israel's deepest incursion into Gaza City. There was widespread [[desertion]] by members of the Qassam Brigades in the face of the IDF advance.<ref name="jpost.com"/>
On 15 January, Israeli [[artillery]] started an intense bombardment of the city while fighting was still going on in the streets. Troops and tanks advanced deeper into the city following the shelling. The Israeli military claimed to have killed dozens of militants since breaching the city limits four days earlier, while they suffered 20–25 soldiers wounded. Among buildings hit by shellfire was the al-Quds hospital, Gaza's second-largest, in the [[Tel al-Hawa]] neighborhood. At least 14 rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel, wounding five and severely damaging a house in [[Sderot]].<ref name="Timeline"/>
Almost all members of Hamas' approximately 100-man strong "Iranian Unit" were killed during a battle in the Zeytoun neighborhood on 15 January. Members of the military wing had previously travelled to Iran for training by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. According to Palestinian sources, Iran was preparing for an end to the fighting and promised money and resources to rebuild military capabilities and infrastructure destroyed during the fighting.<ref name='Haaretz 2001-01-16'>{{Cite news |first=Amos |last=Harel |author2=Yanir Yagna |author3=Avi Issacharoff |author4=Amira Haas |title=Palestinian sources: 'Iran unit' of Hamas has been destroyed |date=2009-01-16 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/palestinian-sources-iran-unit-of-hamas-has-been-destroyed-1.268295 |work=Haaretz |access-date=2009-08-07}}</ref>
The headquarters of the [[United Nations Relief and Works Agency]] (UNRWA) was also shelled on 15 January. There were 3 people injured and tons of food and fuel intended for 750,000 Palestinian refugees were destroyed.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=29558&Cr=gaza&Cr1=unrwa |title=Senior official gives eyewitness account of Israeli shelling of UN Gaza compound |publisher=United Nations |date=2009-01-15 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> The Associated Press initially reported that an anonymous Israeli military official stated that Gaza militants had fired anti-tank weapons and machine guns from inside the compound. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said "it is absolutely true that we were attacked from that place, but the consequences are very sad and we apologize for it, I don't think it should have happened and I'm very sorry." After UNRWA dismissed this as "nonsense", Israel ordered an army investigation into the incident.<ref>[http://www.acus.org/new_atlanticist/israel-shells-un-headquarters-gaza "Israel Shells UN Headquarters in Gaza"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100615184156/http://acus.org/new_atlanticist/israel-shells-un-headquarters-gaza |date=15 June 2010 }} Atlantic Council 2009-01-19 Retrieved 2010-03-28</ref> Israeli officials afterwards "came forward to say that preliminary results showed that the militants ran for safety inside the U.N. compound after firing on Israeli forces from outside".<ref>[http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2009-01/16/content_7404906.htm "Israel shells Gaza UN warehouse, hospital, media offices"] ''China Daily'' 2009-01-16 Retrieved 2010-03-28</ref>
On 16 January, more than 50 Israeli airstrikes were carried out against militants, tunnels, and a mosque suspected of being used as a weapons store. Israeli forces continued their push into Gaza City, while [[Israeli Navy]] vessels shelled militant targets in support.<ref name="Al Jazeera Timeline">{{cite news |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2009/01/200917205418665491.html |title=Timeline: Gaza crisis |publisher=Al Jazeera |access-date=2010-06-05 |archive-date=7 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200807002108/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2009/01/200917205418665491.html }}</ref> About 10 rockets were fired into Southern Israel.<ref name="Timeline"/>
The [[Givati Brigade]] penetrated the deepest into Gaza City. The brigade's reconnaissance battalion swept into the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood and took over two 15-story buildings in search of Hamas operatives two days before the cease fire went into effect. About 40 Palestinian fighters were killed during the operation. The commander of the brigade, Colonel Ilan Malka, was critical of Hamas' use of civilian houses and said that he "took many steps to prevent our soldiers from getting hurt". Malka told reporters that the IDF had initially predicted each battalion would lose six or seven soldiers.<ref name="A necessary operation">{{cite news |author=Yaakov Katz |url=http://www.jpost.com/Features/A-necessary-operation |title=A necessary operation |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=3 August 2009}}</ref>
The Israeli government considered a third phase of the operation with the intent of dealing a "knock out blow" to Hamas. Military and intelligence assessments indicating that shifting the goal to destroying Hamas would require additional weeks of deep ground incursions into urban areas and refugee camps. This was expected to result in heavy casualties on both sides and among civilians, reduce the strong domestic support for the war, and increase international criticism.<ref name="Israeli Arsenal">{{Cite journal |last=Esposito |first=Michele K. |date=Spring 2009 |title=Military Dimensions: The Israeli Arsenal Deployed against Gaza |publisher=[[University of California Press]] on behalf of the [[Institute for Palestine Studies]] |volume=38 |issue=3 |pages=175–91 |jstor=10.1525/jps.2009.XXXVIII.3.175 |issn=1533-8614 |doi=10.1525/jps.2009.XXXVIII.3.175 |journal=Journal of Palestine Studies }}</ref>
====Humanitarian ceasefires====
Due to the number of civilian casualties and the deteriorating humanitarian situation, Israel faced significant international pressure for a ceasefire, the establishment of a [[humanitarian corridor]], access to the population of Gaza and the lifting of the blockade.<ref name="UN-090107Humanitarian">{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/News/briefings/docs/2009/090107_Humanitarian.doc.htm |title=Press conference by humanitarian, human rights organizations on gaza |date=2009-01-07 |publisher=United Nations |access-date=2009-09-08}}
</ref> On 7 January, Israel opened a humanitarian corridor to allow the shipment of aid into Gaza. The Israeli army agreed to interrupt fighting for three hours and Hamas agreed not to launch rockets during the pause.<ref name="VOAtruce">{{Cite news |author=Sonja Pace |title=Israel Opens Up Humanitarian Corridors in Gaza as Fighting Continues |url=http://voanews.com/english/2009-01-07-voa7.cfm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090109061030/http://www.voanews.com/english/2009-01-07-voa7.cfm |archive-date=9 January 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2009/01/200917151851205482.html|title=Israel resumes Gaza raid after lull|website=www.aljazeera.com}}</ref><ref name="recess">{{Cite news |title=Israel Declares Short 'Recess' In Gaza Fighting |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99073070 |date=2009-01-07}}</ref> Israel repeated the ceasefire either daily or every other day. Aid officials and the UN praised the truce, but said it was not enough as fighting usually resumed immediately following the humanitarian ceasefires.<ref name="VOAtruce" /><ref name="mars">CNN [http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/07/israel.gaza/index.html Exchange of fire mars 3-hour truce in Gaza], 7 January 2009</ref><ref name="Haaretz_truce">{{cite news |title=Clashes resume in Gaza City after 3-hour humanitarian truce |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/clashes-resume-in-gaza-city-after-3-hour-humanitarian-truce-1.267636 |agency=Reuters |newspaper=[[Haaretz]] |date=7 January 2009 |access-date=2009-01-07}}</ref><ref name="HumanitarianTruce">{{Cite news |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ioi_0jtO9RjMwPNRoXNCndRPRq3gD95IA22O0 |title=Israel halts campaign for 3 hours to let in aid |agency=Associated Press |last=Barzak |first=Ibrahim |author2=Matti Friedman |date=7 January 2009 |archive-date=22 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090122113809/http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ioi_0jtO9RjMwPNRoXNCndRPRq3gD95IA22O0 }}</ref> An independent report commissioned jointly by the Israeli NGO [[Physicians for Human Rights]] and the Palestinian Medical Relief Society notes that according to testimonies by local witnesses, there were several cases where IDF ground forces breached the daily ceasefire agreement.<ref name="PHR-PMRS">[http://www.phr.org.il/phr/files/articlefile_1241949935203.pdf "Final Report – Independent fact-finding mission into violations of human rights in the Gaza Strip during the period 27.12.2008 – 18.01.2009"], p. 10, p. 60 PHR-Israel and PMRS, April 2009 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305005710/http://www.phr.org.il/phr/files/articlefile_1241949935203.pdf |date=5 March 2016 }}</ref>
===Palestinian paramilitary activity===
[[File:A rocket fired from a civilian area in Gaza towards civilian areas in Southern Israel.jpg|thumb|According to [[Human Rights Watch]] rockets from Gaza were fired from populated areas.<ref name="Human Rights Watch, Rockets from Gaza"/>]]
According to Abu Ahmed, the official media spokesman of the [[Al-Quds Brigades]], the military wing of the [[Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine|Palestinian Islamic Jihad]] movement, Palestinian paramilitary factions in Gaza worked together, operationally and otherwise, to repel the Israeli attack on Gaza. Abu Ahmed told ''[[Asharq al-Awsat]]'' during the war that, "everybody helps everybody else with regards to food, weapons, and first aid; there is no difference between a member 'Al Quds Brigade' or 'Al Qassam Brigade [military wing of Hamas]' or 'Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade' or 'Abu Ali Mustafa Brigade [military wing of Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine or PFLP]'. For everybody's goal is the same and their compass is pointing in the same direction, and that is to drive out the occupation and defeat them, and disrupt their plan to dissolve the Palestinian Cause."<ref name=Sharq>{{cite news |title=Al Quds Brigade: Urban Battle yet to Begin |date=15 January 2009 |author=Abdul-Hadee Aoukal |publisher=Asharq al-Awsat |url=http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=15384 |access-date=2009-08-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120406180838/http://www.asharq-e.com/news.asp?section=1&id=15384 |archive-date=6 April 2012 }}</ref> Hamas said that "rockets fired from Gaza were meant to hit military targets, but because they are unguided, they hit civilians by mistake."<ref name="ReferenceA">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/8257446.stm "Key excerpts: UN Gaza report"] BBC News 2009-09-15 Retrieved 2010-03-28</ref>
Political representatives for Hamas, Islamic Jihad, the PFLP, [[As-Sa'iqa|Saiqa]], the [[Popular Struggle Front]], the [[Revolutionary Palestinian Communist Party|Revolutionary Communist Party]], [[Palestinian Liberation Organization]], [[Fatah]]'s 'Intifada' faction, and a number of other Palestinian factions in [[Syria]] formed a temporary alliance during the offensive as well. They issued a joint statement refusing "any security arrangements that affect the resistance and its legitimate right to struggle against the occupation", and refusing proposals suggesting international forces be sent to Gaza. The coalition also affirmed that any peace initiatives must include an end to the blockade, and an opening of all of Gaza's crossings, including the Rafah crossing with Egypt.<ref name=Bauer0123>{{cite news |title=Palestinian factions united by war |author=Shane Bauer |publisher=[[Al Jazeera English]] |url=http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/war_on_gaza/2009/01/200911915455957756.html |access-date=2009-01-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090122095501/http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/war_on_gaza/2009/01/200911915455957756.html |archive-date=22 January 2009}}</ref>
====Preparation====
[[File:Grad Beersheba.jpg|thumb|A Grad rocket hitting Beersheba]]
Hamas used the months leading to the war to prepare for urban warfare, which was to give them a chance to inflict casualties on the Israeli military.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Asser |first=Martin |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7810506.stm |title=Hamas ready for bitter urban battle |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-04 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Militants booby-trapped houses and buildings and built an extensive system of tunnels in preparation for combat.<ref>Tim Butcher, [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4229042/Israeli-soldiers-shocked-by-tunnel-network.html Israeli soldiers shocked by tunnel network], Telegraph.co.uk 14-01-2009</ref> A Hamas fighter reported that the group had prepared a tunnel network in Gaza city that would allow Hamas to engage the IDF in urban warfare.<ref name=times12Jan>''[[The Times]]'' online, 12 January 2009 [https://web.archive.org/web/20090115112607/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5497340.ece timesonline.co.uk]{{subscription required}}</ref> IDF commanders said that many Hamas members have dug tunnels for themselves under their homes and hid weapon caches in them.<ref name="IDF: Hamas built underground city">[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3651866,00.html "IDF: Hamas built underground city"], Ynetnews, 7 January 2009</ref> Some houses were booby-trapped with mannequins, explosives and adjacent tunnels: Israeli officers said that houses were set up this way so that "Israeli soldiers would shoot the mannequin, mistaking it for a man; an explosion would occur; and the soldiers would be driven or pulled into the hole, where they could be taken prisoner." A colonel estimated that one-third of all houses encountered were booby-trapped.<ref name="NY Times 2009-01-16" /> IDF Brigadier-General Eyal Eisenberg said that roadside bombs were planted in TV satellite dishes, adding that Hamas booby-trapping of homes and schools was "monstrous" and "inhumane".<ref>{{cite news |author=Yaakov Katz |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1232292939041 |title=Hamas use of children was 'monstrous' |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=22 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001162253/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1232292939041 |archive-date=1 October 2011 }}</ref> Ron Ben-Yishai, an Israeli military correspondent embedded with invading ground forces, stated that entire blocks of houses were booby-trapped and wired in preparation for urban confrontation with the IDF. Israel said a map showing the deployment of explosives and Hamas forces in the al-Atatra neighborhood in northern Gaza was found. The map reportedly showed that Hamas placed many explosives and firing positions in residential areas, several mosques, and next to a gas station.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/09/hamas.sketch/index.html |title=Israel says map shows Hamas puts Gaza civilians at risk |publisher=CNN |date=2009-01-09 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Israel deployed the elite [[Sayeret Yahalom]] combat engineering unit throughout the brigades with new equipment including miniature robots and improved wall-breaching munitions to counter the booby-traps.<ref name='Aviation Week 2009-05-11'/>
[[File:Flickr - Israel Defense Forces - Weapons Cache in Northern Gaza.jpg|thumb|upright|left|An example of a weapons cache found in northern Gaza]]
According to ''[[Jane's Defence Weekly]]'', armed groups in Gaza counted [[Palestinian domestic weapons production|domestically produced]] anti-armor [[Rocket-propelled grenade|RPGs]] like [[Batar|al-Battar]] and [[Al-Bana|Banna 1]] and Banna 2 in their arsenal.<ref name=UNFFMGCReportp454>{{Cite news |url=http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/09/15/UNFFMGCReport.pdf |title=Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, 2009, p. 454. |access-date=2010-03-24 |work=The Guardian |location=London}}</ref> Hamas and Islamic Jihad also manufactured a variety of [[improvised explosive device]]s (IEDs), some of which were anti-personnel bombs and others were planted on the sides of roads or underground to be activated against tanks and armored personnel carriers. According to ''[[The Jerusalem Post]]'', some of the IEDs were manufactured from medicine bottles transferred to the Gaza Strip as humanitarian aid by Israel.<ref>{{cite news |author=Yaakov Katz |url=http://www.jpost.com/Middle-East/Hamas-threw-medicine-grenades-at-IDF |title=Hamas threw 'medicine grenades' at IDF |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=13 February 2009}}</ref> The same newspaper also reported that Hamas representatives said they were fighting with the aid of armored vehicles and weapons confiscated from the [[Palestinian National Authority]], given by Israel, the [[United States]] and other countries.<ref>{{cite news |author=Khaled Abu Toameh |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1230733174237&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |title=Hamas: We're using PA arms to battle IDF |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=4 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120224113253/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1230733174237&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=24 February 2012}}</ref>
[[File:Flickr - Israel Defense Forces - Weapons Cache in Northern Gaza (1).jpg|thumb|
A weapons cache in found in northern Gaza
]]
At least one Palestinian witness told an Italian reporter that on many roofs of the tall buildings that were hit by Israeli bombs, including UN building, there were rocket-launchers or Hamas look-outs.<ref name="Maximum 600 Palestinians died in Gaza">{{Cite news |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292938156&pagename=JPArticle%2FShowFull |title=Maximum 600 Palestinians died in Gaza |date=2009-01-22 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001162613/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292938156&pagename=JPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref><ref name="Gaza doctor refutes casualties reported in Cast Lead op">{{Cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/gaza-doctor-refutes-casualties-reported-in-cast-lead-op-1.268701 |title=Gaza doctor refutes casualties reported in Cast Lead op |date=2009-01-23 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> On 27 January, the Shin Bet released details given by Hamas captives, including the militants' use of mosques for weapon caches and military training. Militants admitted to the location of Hamas weapon storage sites, in tunnels, in the homes of activists, and in citrus groves and mosques, and told of theory instruction given in mosques as well.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/hamas-captives-tell-shin-bet-we-used-gaza-mosques-to-hide-arms-for-training-1.269046 |title=Hamas captives tell Shin Bet: We used Gaza mosques to hide arms, for training |author=Amos Harel |newspaper=[[Haaretz]] |date=2009-01-28 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> Following the visit of the British Army veteran Colonel [[Tim Collins (British Army officer)|Tim Collins]] to the ruins of one of the mosques targeted by the IDF in Rafah, he said that in his view the evidencies of the secondary explosion, that could have indicated weapon's storage in the mosque, are present.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/newsnight/8470100.stm "Celebrated Iraq war veteran's view of the Gaza conflict"] BBC News, 20 January 2010</ref>
====Palestinian rockets in Gaza====
According to [[Human Right Watch]], On 24 December 2008, a rocket struck a bedroom of a family living in the [[Tel al-Hawa]] area in southern Gaza City, critically wounding one man. The brother of this victim told after the incident no armed group came to apologize. "I was next door in my home when this all happened. When one of those responsible tried to bargain for the shrapnel, I said that if no one took responsibility I will go to the courts, so Hamas came to me privately and admitted it." On 26 December 2008, a Palestinian rocket struck north of [[Beit Lahiya]], a house was hit killing two cousins and wounding another. The grandfather described the rocket as about one meter in length; according to Human Rights Watch examination the diameter of the pipe is 120&nbsp;mm. The grandfather said the rocket was taken by Hamas policemen for investigation: "After he left, the war started and we never heard from him again. We got the compensation given to all victims of the war."<ref name="Human Rights Watch, Rockets from Gaza"/>
====Rocket attacks into Israel====
{{See also|Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel|Palestinian political violence}}
[[File:Beersheva kindergarten after rocket attack from Gaza.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Kindergarten]] classroom in [[Beersheba]] hit by [[BM-21 Grad|Grad]] rocket from Gaza<ref name="dec31_ynetnews" />]]
After the initial Israeli aerial assault, Hamas quickly dispersed both its personnel and weapons and equipment.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/WTARC/2009/me_israel0019_01_08.asp |title=War report: Israel's air force scored with intel, drone support; 'Hamas is not Hizubllah' |publisher=Worldtribune.com |date=2009-01-07 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> According to [[Human Rights Watch]] rockets from Gaza were fired from populated areas, an Islamic Jihad fighter said: "the most important thing is achieving our military goals.... We stay away from the houses if we can, but that's often impossible."<ref name="Human Rights Watch, Rockets from Gaza">{{cite web |title=Rockets from Gaza |url=https://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/D7E5DD676BDCF47C8525760B004A4870 |publisher=[[Human Rights Watch]] |access-date=17 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116054400/http://unispal.un.org/UNISPAL.NSF/0/D7E5DD676BDCF47C8525760B004A4870 |archive-date=16 January 2013 }}</ref> According to BBC, Palestinian groups had been firing "in response to Israeli massacres".<ref name=bbc1309>{{cite news |title=Palestinian groups continue firing rockets "in response to Israeli massacres". |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-191450521/palestinian-groups-continue-firing.html |work=BBC |access-date=17 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116053643/http://www.accessmylibrary.com/article-1G1-191450521/palestinian-groups-continue-firing.html |archive-date=16 January 2013 }}</ref> The strike range of Hamas rockets had increased from 16&nbsp;km (9.9&nbsp;mi) to 40&nbsp;km (25&nbsp;mi) since early 2008 with the use of improved [[Qassam rocket|Qassam]] and [[BM-21|factory-made]] rockets.<ref>[https://www.reuters.com/article/middleeastCrisis/idUSL6529388 "FACTBOX-Hamas's arsenal of rockets"], Reuters 06-01-2009</ref> Rockets reached major Israeli cities [[Ashdod]], [[Beersheba]] and [[Gedera]] for the first time, putting one-eighth of Israel's population in rocket range.<ref name="AP 2009-01-13">{{Cite news |author=Amy Teibel |author2=Ian Deitch |title=Despite Gaza toll, Israeli media focus on Israel |url=http://www.cleveland.com/world/index.ssf/2009/01/despite_gaza_toll_israeli_medi.html |agency=Associated Press |newspaper=The Plain Dealer |location=Cleveland |date=13 January 2009 |access-date=18 March 2009}}</ref> On 3 January 2009 [[Ma'an News Agency]] reported: "The Al-Qassam Brigades, military wing of Hamas, said that after a week since the start of the 'Battle of Al-Furqan [the criterion]' it has managed to fire 302 rockets, at an average of 44 rockets daily."<ref name=bbc1309/> As of 13 January 2009, Palestinian militants had launched approximately 565 rockets and 200 mortars at Israel since the beginning of the conflict, according to Israeli security sources.<ref>{{cite news |author=Yair Yanga |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/shin-bet-565-rockets-200-mortar-shells-fired-at-israel-since-start-of-gaza-op-1.268043 |title=Shin Bet: Some 565 rockets, 200 mortar shells fired at Israel since start of Gaza op |newspaper=Haaretz |date=2009-01-13 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> A source close to Hamas described the movement's use of stealth when firing: "They fired rockets in between the houses and covered the alleys with sheets so they could set the rockets up in five minutes without the planes seeing them. The moment they fired, they escaped, and they are very quick."<ref name=parsing>{{cite news |title=Parsing Gains of Gaza War |author=Ethan Bronner |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/19/world/middleeast/19assess.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=19 January 2009 |access-date=6 April 2012}}</ref> It is reported that 102 rockets and 35 mortars were fired by Fatah, Hamas' chief rival.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292907174&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |date=2009-01-19 |access-date=2009-01-20 |title=Al-Aksa Brigades: We also fought IDF in Gaza |author=Khaled Abu Toameh |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001162701/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292907174&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref>
Besides the rockets fired by the [[Qassam Brigades]] of Hamas, other factions claimed responsibility for rockets fired into Israel and attacks on Israeli soldiers, including Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades (affiliated with [[Fatah]]), the Abu Ali Mustapha Brigades, the Quds Brigades and the [[Popular Resistance Committees|Popular Resistance Councils]].<ref name=Bauer0123/>
Militants fired over 750 rockets and mortars from Gaza into Israel during the conflict.<ref name="jpost_total_rockets">{{Cite news |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231917083226&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |title=Terrorists fire 18 rockets at Israel |date=2009-01-14 |access-date=2009-03-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001162735/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231917083226&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref> Bersheeba and Gedera were the farthest areas hit by rocket or mortars.<ref name="jpost_total_rockets" /> The rockets also caused property damage, including damage to three schools.<ref name="dec31_ynetnews">[[Ynetnews]] [http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3647765,00.html "Rocket barrages hit Beersheba, Ashkelon; 5 lightly hurt"], 31 December 2008</ref><ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3647569,00.html "Rockets reach Beersheba, cause damage"], Ynetnews, 30 December 2008.</ref><ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3654153,00.html "Rocket lands near Ashdod kindergarten; no injuries"], Ynetnews, 11 January 2009.</ref> Senior Hamas official Mahmoud al-Zahar stated during the operation "they [Israeli forces] shelled everyone in Gaza.... They shelled children and hospitals and mosques, ... and in doing so, they gave us legitimacy to strike them in the same way."<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/05/israel.gaza/index.html |title=Israeli military surrounds Gaza City, officials say |publisher=CNN |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
[[Human Rights Watch]] noted in the open letter to [[Ismail Haniyeh]] that despite his Foreign Ministry stance as part of response to the [[Goldstone Report]], Palestinian armed groups remain responsible for firing rockets indiscriminately or deliberately at Israeli civilian objects. HRW also noted that Palestinian militants put Palestinian civilians at risk of Israeli counter-attacks by launching rockets from populated areas.<ref name="Hamas: Investigate Attacks on Israeli Civilians">{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/news/2009/10/20/hamas-investigate-attacks-israeli-civilians |title=Hamas: Investigate Attacks on Israeli Civilians |publisher=Human Rights Watch |date=2009-10-20 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> The UN fact finding mission stated that the firing of rockets at Israel constituted a deliberate attack against the civilian population and was in violation of international law.<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/>
After the war, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades revealed new rockets it used during Israel's military operation and published pictures of weapons ([[Tandem-charge|Tandem]] and [[RPG-29]] anti-armor rockets) that it could secretly smuggle to Gaza.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2010-01/11/content_12792206.htm |title=Hamas restrains from another war with Israel in Gaza |publisher=Xinhua |date=2010-01-11 |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100114050024/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2010-01/11/content_12792206.htm |archive-date=14 January 2010 }}</ref>
[[File:Kassam hit sderot.jpg|thumb|Repairs being made to water pipe after it was hit a by a rocket]]
Besides being hit with rockets fired from Gaza, Israel experienced other attacks along the borders with Lebanon and Syria.<ref>Rockets from Lebanon:
* [http://www.jpost.com/Israel/IDF-on-alert-after-Nahariya-attack "IDF on alert after Nahariya attack"] By Yaakov Katz, 8 January 2009, ''The Jerusalem Post'' retrieved 8 January 2009
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7817135.stm "Rockets hit Israel from Lebanon"], BBC News
* [http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/08/israel.rockets/index.html "Lebanese PM condemns rocket attack on Israel"], CNN
* {{cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/12/content_10642207.htm |title=Israeli soldiers come under fire at Syria border fence |publisher=Xinhua |date=2009-11-12 |archive-date=18 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090118172612/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/12/content_10642207.htm }}</ref>
==Unilateral ceasefires==
On 17 January, Israeli officials announced a [[unilateralism|unilateral]] [[ceasefire]]. Israeli prime minister [[Ehud Olmert]] declared the ceasefire effective that night, at 00:00&nbsp;GMT on 18 January.<ref name="ceasefire">{{Cite news |title=Israel declares ceasefire in Gaza |work=BBC News |date=17 January 2009 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7835794.stm |access-date=17 January 2009}}</ref> The ceasefire consisted of two phases: "First a ceasefire is declared. If Hamas stops firing rockets then Israel pulls its forces out of the Gaza Strip. If rocket fire resumes then the IDF goes back in, this time with the international backing gained by having tried a truce." Olmert declared that the military objectives had been met.<ref name=haaretz18Jan>{{cite news |newspaper=[[Haaretz]] |title=Israel declares victory in Gaza, but at what cost? |author=Aluf Benn |date=18 January 2009 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/analysis-israel-declares-victory-in-gaza-but-at-what-cost-1.268327 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Keinon |first=Herb |date=16 January 2009 |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232100163477&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |title=Olmert calls a halt to assault on Hamas |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001162951/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232100163477&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref> Hamas initially "vowed to fight on",<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUSLG514136._CH_.2400 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120915060430/http://www.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUSLG514136._CH_.2400 |archive-date=15 September 2012 |title=Israel plans ceasefire, Hamas vows to fight on |author=Nidal al-Mughrabi |date=17 January 2009 |publisher=Reuters |access-date=2009-01-17}}</ref> and responded that any continued Israeli presence in Gaza would be regarded as an act of war. Farzi Barhoum, a Hamas spokesman, said before the ceasefire began, "The occupier must halt his fire immediately and withdraw from our land and lift his blockade and open all crossings and we will not accept any one Zionist soldier on our land, regardless of the price that it costs."<ref name="ceasefire_rockets_bbc">{{Cite news |title=Rocket fire tests Gaza ceasefire |work=BBC News |date=18 January 2009 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7835981.stm |access-date=18 January 2009}}</ref> Palestinian militants resumed rocket fire into southern Israel the following Sunday morning, four of the six fired landed in or near [[Sderot]].<ref name="ceasefire_rockets_ynet">{{Cite news |title=6 rockets, 3 mortars fired from Gaza |publisher=[[Ynetnews]] |date=18 January 2009 |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3657876,00.html |access-date=18 January 2009}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7835981.stm |title=Rockets threaten Gaza ceasefire |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-18 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> The Israeli military returned fire and launched an air strike against the rocket launching site in northern Gaza.<ref>{{cite news |agency=AFP |date=18 January 2009 |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gsDq6OF2EPsiWRhxLymVUUKVcmvQ |title=First Israeli air strike on Gaza after unilateral truce: army |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205092415/https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gsDq6OF2EPsiWRhxLymVUUKVcmvQ |archive-date=5 February 2009}}</ref>
On 18 January [[Hamas]], [[Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine|Islamic Jihad]] and other paramilitias said they would stop launching rockets into Israel for one week and demanded "the withdrawal of the enemy forces from the Gaza Strip within a week, along with the opening of all the crossings for the entry of humanitarian aid, food and other necessities for our people in the Gaza Strip".<ref name=haaretz18Jan2>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/haniyeh-hamas-won-gaza-war-but-was-wise-to-declare-truce-1.268367 |author=Avi Issacharoff |title=Haniyeh: Hamas won Gaza war, but was wise to declare truce |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref><ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/18/israel.gaza/index.html "Hamas, Israel set independent cease-fires"]. CNN 18 January 2009</ref><ref name="BBC-Hamas-ceasefire">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7836205.stm "Hamas announces ceasefire in Gaza"], BBC, 2009-18-01</ref> Three days later, the last Israeli troops left Gaza.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/world/middleeast/22mideast.html?_r=1&scp=8&sq=israel%20gaza&st=cse |work=The New York Times |title=Israel Completes Gaza Withdrawal |first1=Ethan |last1=Bronner |first2=Alan |last2=Cowell |date=2009-01-22 |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref>
Since the unilateral ceasefires were declared on 17 January, militants have fired rockets and mortar shells from Gaza,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/at-least-six-gaza-rockets-hit-southern-israel-1.271104 |title=At least six Gaza rockets hit southern Israel |author=Yanir Yagna |newspaper=Haaretz |date=28 February 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1235410720483 |title=Kassam rocket strikes Eshkol Region |work=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001163523/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1235410720483 |archive-date=1 October 2011 }}</ref> and the IDF has launched airstrikes against Gaza.<ref>{{Cite news |title='Five rockets' fired into Israel |work=BBC News |date=28 February 2009 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7916555.stm |access-date=28 February 2009}}</ref>
===Continued negotiations===
Egyptian mediators held discussions with Israel and Hamas about extending the cease-fire by a year or more. Hamas and Fatah met to allow both to play a role in rebuilding.<ref name="NYT0128">{{cite news |title=U.S. Envoy Urges 2 Sides to Fortify Gaza Truce |author=Kershner, Isabel and Ethan Bronner |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/29/world/middleeast/29mideast.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=29 January 2009 |access-date=28 January 2009}}</ref> Israel began pressuring Egypt to do more to stop weapons smuggling into Gaza, the halting of which is one of Israel's central demands in extending a cease-fire. On 27 January 2009, [[Foreign Minister of Egypt]] [[Ahmed Aboul Gheit]] discouraged Britain, [[France]] and [[Germany]] from sending warships to patrol the waters off Gaza, which the three European nations felt could help halt seaborne smuggling. Gheit said such efforts would harm Europe's relations with the Arab world. Egypt also opposed proposals for European troops to be stationed on the border between Gaza and Egypt to monitor smuggling tunnels.<ref name="WP0128">Witte, Griff. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/01/27/AR2009012700260.html?hpid=topnews "Blast at Gaza Border Kills Israeli Soldier; Palestinian Farmer Killed by Gunfire"]. ''[[The Washington Post]]'', 28 January 2009. Retrieved on 2008-01-28.</ref>
Israel, along with many Western and some Arab countries, wanted international aid groups to control aid from donations around the world, so that Hamas would not receive credit for the rebuilding. To speed up reconstruction, Hamas agreed that it would not insist on collecting reconstruction money itself and would allow donated money to flow through different avenues based on the various alliances, although Hamas ultimately expected to administer the aid. But advisors to senior Hamas political leader [[Ismail Haniyeh]] said Israel's willingness to open the border for humanitarian aid only was unacceptable, as Hamas would need much more to rebuild its economy and provide relief for citizens. Haniyeh aides said the cease-fire is contingent on a full border opening.<ref name="NYT0128" />
Shortly after becoming [[President of the United States]], [[Barack Obama]] directed newly appointed special envoy to the Middle East [[George J. Mitchell]] to visit Israel, the [[West Bank]], Egypt, Jordan, [[Turkey]] and [[Saudi Arabia]] for peace talks. Mitchell began his meetings in Cairo on 27 January 2009, and Obama said his visit was part of the President's campaign promise to listen to both sides of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict and work toward a Middle East peace deal. Mitchell did not plan to talk to Hamas, but instead focus on talks with the more moderate [[Palestinian National Authority|Palestinian Authority]].<ref name="WP0128" /> A spokesman for Haniyeh said he respected Mitchell, but was disappointed with the envoy's decision not to hold discussions with Hamas.<ref name="NYT0128" />
[[Ehud Olmert]] stated that Israel would not agree to a long term truce or lift the blockade on Gaza without the freeing of [[Gilad Shalit]], an IDF soldier held captive in Gaza since June 2006.<ref name="bbc_shalit_ceasefire">{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7890294.stm |title=Israel puts terms on Gaza truce |date=14 February 2009 |work=BBC News |access-date=2009-02-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/hamas-idf-arrests-put-gilad-shalit-in-danger-1.272465 |title=Hamas: IDF arrests put Gilad Shalit in danger |agency=Haaretz Service and News Agencies |newspaper=Haaretz |date=19 March 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Hamas demanded that Israel release 1,400 [[Palestinian prisoners]] in exchange for Shalit and such negotiations be kept separate from ceasefire negotiations.<ref name="bbc_truce_captives">{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7896506.stm |title=Captive deal 'key to Gaza truce' |date=18 February 2009 |work=BBC News |access-date=2009-02-27}}</ref>
==Casualties==
{{Main|Casualties of the Gaza War (2008–2009)}}
Human Rights organizations and the UN counted just above 1,400 Palestinian deaths,{{sfn|''PCHR''|2009}}{{sfn|''B'Tselem''}}<ref name=Goldstone_casualties>Goldstone report, paragr. 1682</ref> Israel acknowledged 1,166 deaths.{{sfn|Lappin|2009}}<ref name=Reuters_Israels_Gaza_toll>[https://www.reuters.com/article/featuredCrisis/idUSLQ977827 "Israel's Gaza toll far lower than Palestinian tally"]. Reuters, 26 March 2009</ref>
According to PCHR, among the Palestinian deaths were 926 unarmed civilians, 255 police officers, and 236 fighters.{{sfn|''PCHR''|2009}} B'Tselem counted 248 killed police officers.{{sfn|''B'Tselem''}} [[Al Mezan Center for Human Rights|Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights]] said in January 2009, that 1,268 people were killed, among them 288 children and 103 women, and 85% of those killed were not combatants. The IDF tallied 295 killed civilians, least 709 armed militants and 162 undetermined.{{sfn|Lappin|2009}}<ref name=Reuters_Israels_Gaza_toll/>
The Hamas Interior Minister [[Fathi Hamad]] stated that between 200 and 300 Hamas fighters, another 150 security forces and 250 policemen were killed.<ref name=AFP_300_fighters_killed>[https://web.archive.org/web/20140130145115/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hF7u6SVbHfZSeLKnM97LlsaGWg_Q?docId=CNG.af5a1cb25e03ecc70924e5a7787c7aa3.831 "Hamas says 300 fighters killed in Gaza war"]. AFP, 1 November 2009 </ref><ref name="Ma'an 200-300 killed">[http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=329861 "Minister: 200–300 Hamas fighters killed in war"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101203050912/http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=329861 |date=3 December 2010 }}. Ma'an, 1 November 2010</ref>
During the war, 3 Israeli civilians were killed by rocket attacks. A total of 10 Israeli soldiers were killed in the war, of whom 6 were killed by enemy action and 4 were killed by [[friendly fire]].{{sfn|''B'Tselem''}}<ref name=latimes2009jan13>[https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-jan-13-fg-gaza13-story.html "Israeli troops step up attacks on Hamas outside Gaza City"]. Sebastian Rotella and Rushdi abu Alouf, ''Los Angeles Times'', 13 January 2009</ref>
=== Civilians versus combatants ===
In any conflict, the ratio of combatant and civilian deaths is a highly sensitive topic. During the fighting in the Gaza War, the main source for the number of Palestinian casualties was Hamas' Ministry of Health in Gaza. The [[ICRC]] used these figures, but at a later stage it made its own assessment.<ref name=BBC_bell /> Because Israel allowed very few international workers and journalists in Gaza during much of the conflict, it has been difficult to verify the figures independently.<ref name=BBC_bell>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7855070.stm "Counting casualties of Gaza's war"]. Bethany Bell, BBC News, 28 January 2009</ref>
In ''[[The Jerusalem Post]]'', Israeli-Arab journalist [[Khaled Abu Toameh]] suggested that killed fighters in civilian clothes led to the over-counting of civilian casualties and under-counting Hamas military casualties, as Palestinian casualties arrived at hospitals without weapons or any other signs revealing they were fighters.<ref>Khaled Abu Toameh, [http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292909104&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull Analysis: Trumpets of victory strike false note], ''The Jerusalem Post'', 20 January 2009 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120309032124/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292909104&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |date=9 March 2012 }}</ref>
B'Tselem wrote that its fatalities classification was based on the guidelines of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) published in June 2009. The PCHR civilian count includes Hamas members killed in what the PCHR assessed were non-combat situations. The Al Mezan centre defined combatants as "those taking up arms against Israeli troops".<ref name=BBC_bell /> The Israeli [[International Institute for Counter-Terrorism]]<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mor |first1=Avi |last2=Tal |first2=Pavel |last3=Radlauer |first3=Don |last4=Shahar |first4=Yael |title=Casualties in Operation Cast Lead: A closer look |url=http://www.ict.org.il/images/ICT_Cast_Lead_Casualties-A_Closer_Look.pdf |publisher=International Institute for Counter-Terrorism |date=2009}}</ref> and SPME<ref>{{cite web |author=Dr. Yael Stein MD |url=http://spme.org/campus-news-climate/elihu-d-richter-and-yael-stein-comments-on-btselems-civilian-casualty-estimates-in-operation-cast-lead/7403/ |title=Elihu D. Richter and Yael Stein: Comments on B'Tselem's Civilian Casualty Estimates in Operation Cast Lead – SPME Scholars for Peace in the Middle East |publisher=Spme.org |date=2009-09-22 |access-date=2014-08-17}}</ref> have contested the classifications of B'Tselem and PCHR.
==== Gazan police ====
During the conflict Israel targeted numerous police facilities in Gaza. Many of these attacks occurred during the first minutes of the operations resulting in the deaths of 99 policemen and nine other members of the public.<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/><ref name=btselemcasualties>{{cite web |url=http://www.btselem.org/download/20090909_cast_lead_fatalities_eng.pdf |title=B'Tselem's investigation of fatalities in Operation Cast Lead |publisher=B'tselem |access-date=2012-07-01}}</ref> The attacks on Police during the first day of the operation included the bombing of a police cadet graduation ceremony, killing scores of police cadets along with family members who had come to attend the celebration. Police cadets killed in the incident included traffic police and musicians in the police orchestra.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/palestinianauthority/3981502/Israel-attack-on-Gaza-Fragile-peace-shattered-again.html |title=Israel attack on Gaza: Fragile peace shattered again |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=2012-07-02 |location=London |first=Tim |last=Butcher |date=2008-12-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2011/may/26/goldstone-and-gaza-whats-still-true/?pagination=false |title=Goldstone and Gaza: What's Still True |work=The New York Review of Books |access-date=2012-07-02}}</ref> The UN fact finding mission established that approximately 240 Gaza policemen were killed by Israeli forces during the course of the conflict constituting over one sixth of the total Palestinian casualties.<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/> According to Ayman al-Batniji, spokesperson for the Palestinian Police Force in Gaza, almost 251 policemen were killed within the first few hours of the attack which also left more than 700 others injured, including those who could never return to work due to losing their legs and other limbs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Humaid |first=Maram |title='Israel meant to kill more': Gaza 10 years after Op Cast Lead |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/12/27/israel-meant-to-kill-more-gaza-10-years-after-op-cast-lead |access-date=2023-01-26 |website=www.aljazeera.com |language=en}}</ref>
===== Legality =====
The UN Fact Finding Mission analysed the police institutions in Gaza from the time Hamas gained control. They concluded that the Gaza police were a civilian law-enforcement agency and that Israel's blanket targeting of the Gaza police was therefore a violation of international humanitarian law.<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/>
[[Human Rights Watch]] stated that police are presumptively civilians but on a specific case-by-case basis can be considered valid targets if formally incorporated into the armed forces of a party to a conflict or directly participate in the hostilities. They stressed that blanket decisions must not be made about police being legitimate targets and that a decision that police and police stations are legitimate military targets depends on whether those police play a role in fighting against Israel, or whether a particular police station is used to store weapons or for some other military purpose.<ref name="hrw_civilians_release">[https://www.hrw.org/en/news/2008/12/30/israelgaza-civilians-must-not-be-targets "Israel/Gaza: Civilians must not be targets"]. Human Rights Watch, 30 December 2008</ref> [[B'Tselem]] also states that police officers are presumed to be civilians and likely not legitimate objects of attack under international humanitarian law.<ref name=BTselem_explanation/>
===== Israeli views =====
The Israeli Orient Research Group reported that 78 of the 89 killed during this first IAF strike were terror operatives, many of them belonging to the militant group, al-Qassam Brigades.{{citation needed|date=October 2013}} The Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs further reported that 286 of the 343 police officers killed during the offensive were members of terror organizations and that another 27 fighters belonged to units undergoing infantry training.{{citation needed|date=October 2013}} It noted that the security apparatuses participated in terror activity and that the Hamas leadership presented these organizations as at the forefront of the jihad for liberating all of Palestine.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3720759,00.html |title=Report: Most Hamas 'officers' killed in Gaza were terrorists |publisher=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2011-03-27}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Halevi |first=Jonathan D. |title=Palestinian "Policemen" Killed in Gaza Operation Were Trained Terrorists |url=http://www.jcpa.org/JCPA/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DRIT=1&DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=111&FID=442&PID=0&IID=3081&TTL=Palestinian_%E2%80%9CPolicemen%E2%80%9D_Killed_in_Gaza_Operation_Were_Trained_Terrorists |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090917091003/http://www.jcpa.org/JCPA/Templates/ShowPage.asp?DRIT=1&DBID=1&LNGID=1&TMID=111&FID=442&PID=0&IID=3081&TTL=Palestinian_%E2%80%9CPolicemen%E2%80%9D_Killed_in_Gaza_Operation_Were_Trained_Terrorists |archive-date=17 September 2009 |newspaper=Jerusalem Centre for Public Affairs |date=13 September 2009 }}</ref>
The IDF made clear that it regards police under the control of Hamas in Gaza to be equivalent to the enemies armed fighters, including them in the militant's count.<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/><ref name=Reuters_Israels_Gaza_toll/> A government paper published pictures of four men that were killed during the military operations that they claim were downloaded from Palestinian websites. The men are identified in the different pictures as both policemen and members of al-Qassam Brigades.<ref name="Consent and advise">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1059925.html |title=Consent and advise |date=2009-02-05 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=2009-06-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090202065705/http://haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1059925.html |archive-date=2 February 2009}}</ref> Israeli [[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center]] (ITIC) alleged that the distinction between the internal security forces and Hamas military wing is not sharply defined and cites Gaza police officials who said that police were instructed to fight the enemy in case of an invasion into the Gaza Strip.<ref name="Mounting evidence indicates">{{cite web |url=http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/hamas_e067.htm |title=Mounting evidence indicates |date=24 March 2009 |publisher=ITIC |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091013114213/http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/html/hamas_e067.htm |archive-date=13 October 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/10/world/middleeast/10mideast.html?_r=1 |work=The New York Times |title=Hamas in Largest Arms Buildup Yet, Israeli Study Says |first=Ethan |last=Bronner |date=2008-04-10 |access-date=2010-05-05}}</ref> Many security force members were reported to "moonlight" with the militant group, Izzidin al-Qassam Brigades.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2009-jan-01-fg-gaza-scene1-story.html |work=Los Angeles Times |title=Gaza police back on the beat amid Israeli attacks |first1=Ashraf |last1=Khalil |first2=Ahmed |last2=Burai |date=2009-01-01 |access-date=2010-05-05}}</ref>
=== Gazan rockets ===
During the conflict, Palestinian groups fired rockets targeting Israeli civilians in the cities of Ashdod, Beersheba and Gedera placing 1/8 of the Israeli population at risk. The military wing of Hamas said that after a week from the start, it had managed to fire 302 rockets, at an average of 44 rockets daily. 102 rockets and 35 mortars were fired by Fatah at Israel. Over 750 rockets and mortars were fired from Gaza into Israel during the conflict wounded 182 civilians, killing 3 people, and causing minor suffering to another 584 people suffering from shock and anxiety. Several rockets landed in schools and one fell close to a kindergarten, all located in residential areas. The UN fact finding mission stated that this constituted a deliberate attack against the civilian population and was unjustifiable in international law.<ref name="dec31_ynetnews"/><ref name="jpost_total_rockets"/>
==Aftermath==
Israel was victorious militarily, but its reputation was harmed.<ref name="Victorious, but vilified: Israel has 'destroyed its image and its soul'">{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/victorious-but-vilified-israel-has-destroyed-its-image-and-its-soul-1418920.html |work=The Independent |location=London |title=Victorious, but vilified: Israel has 'destroyed its image and its soul' |first1=Kim |last1=Sengupta |first2=Donald |last2=MacIntyre |date=2009-01-18 |access-date=2010-05-03}}</ref> The international community continued to isolate Hamas (except for [[Iran]] and [[Syria]]), because it rejected the [[Quartet on the Middle East|Quartet]] demands to recognize Israel, accept the [[Oslo accords]] peace initiative and abandon violence in exchange for international recognition as representatives of the Palestinian people.<ref name="Hamas rejects U.S. demand to recognize Israel">{{cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-02/28/content_10918470.htm |title=Hamas rejects U.S. demand to recognize Israel English Xinhua |publisher=Xinhua |date=2009-02-28 |access-date=2010-06-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110610014601/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-02/28/content_10918470.htm |archive-date=10 June 2011 }}</ref> In the months following the war, Hamas suspended its use of rockets and shifted focus to winning support at home and abroad through cultural initiatives and public relations, with the aim to build a "cultural resistance". Hamas officials stated that "The current situation required a stoppage of rockets. After the war, the fighters needed a break and the people needed a break."<ref name="Hamas Shifts From Rockets to Culture War">[https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/24/world/middleeast/24gaza.html?_r=2 "Hamas Shifts From Rockets to Culture War"], ''The New York Times'', 24 July 2009 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120323045808/http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/24/world/middleeast/24gaza.html?_r=2 |date=23 March 2012 }}</ref>
The war was an Israeli [[tactical victory]] and a significant tactical defeat for Hamas.<ref name="nytimes.com">Ethan Bonner, [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/24/world/middleeast/24gaza.html Hamas Shifts From Rockets to Culture War] ''The New York Times'', 24 July 2009.</ref><ref>David Makovsky, [http://www.middle-east-policy.org/print.php?template=C05&CID=2997 Preliminary Assessment of Israel's Operation Cast Lead] {{dead link|date=October 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} The Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 23 January 2009 {{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref><ref name="haaretz.com">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/senior-shin-bet-official-hamas-completely-lost-gaza-war-1.5743 |title=Senior Shin Bet official: Hamas completely lost Gaza war |author=Amos Harel |newspaper=Haaretz |date=21 October 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> Al-Qassam Brigades reported in "The outcome of al-Qassam operations during the Battle of ''al-Furqan''" they killed 102 Israeli soldiers. On 19 January 2009, a spokesperson for the group said on [[al-Arabiya]] "Israel lost 'at least 80 soldiers' in the fighting" and said about Hamas losses "only 48 fighters slain in Israel war". According to United Nations report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission of Human Rights Council, which was on General Assembly's agenda on 29 October 2009: "The large discrepancy in the data confirms the Mission's observations below in the report about the reliability of the information about the Gaza military operations posted on websites of al-Qassam and other Palestinian armed groups."<ref>{{cite web |title=Report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission |url=https://unispal.un.org/pdfs/A64490.pdf |publisher=[[United Nations Information System on the Question of Palestine]] |access-date=18 December 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130116054422/http://unispal.un.org/pdfs/A64490.pdf |archive-date=16 January 2013 }}</ref> In November 2010, the Hamas Interior Minister acknowledged that around 700 militants either part of Hamas or affiliated factions were killed in the war.<ref name=AFP_300_fighters_killed/>
Several senior Hamas military commanders and politburo members were killed, as well as approximately 50 explosives experts.<ref name="jpost.com">{{cite news |last=Spyer |first=Jonathan |author-link=Jonathan Spyer |url=http://www.jpost.com/Features/FrontLines/Article.aspx?id=154525 |title=Hamas seeks new doctrine after Gaza War failures |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=10 September 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121103101551/http://www.jpost.com/Features/FrontLines/Article.aspx?id=154525 |archive-date=3 November 2012}}</ref> Hamas experienced "widespread desertion" in the face of the Israeli advance.<ref name="jpost.com" /> Hamas also lost a very large amount of weaponry and equipment; key storage facilities were discovered under mosques and public buildings.<ref name="jpost.com"/> A former [[Shin Bet]] deputy director who co-authored a report on the war noted, "Hamas had planned to stand and fight, but the Iz al-Qassam Brigades proved unequal to the task ... and consequently they failed to match the public image Hamas has tried so hard to present of stalwart, proficient Islamic warriors."<ref name="haaretz.com" />
In addition, the Israeli operation greatly curtailed years of Hamas rocket fire, returning a sense of normalcy to Southern Israel.<ref>Bronner, [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/20/world/middleeast/20mideast.html Painful Mideast Truth: Force Trumps Diplomacy] 20 October 2009.</ref> In the year before the war, Hamas had fired over 3,300 rockets at Israel's Gaza periphery towns. That number dropped to less than 300 in the ten months following the conflict.<ref>Isabel Kershner [https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/09/world/middleeast/09israel.html "Along Gaza, a Quiet (But Still Tense) Life"] ''The New York Times'' 9 October 2009.</ref>
Defense analyst David Eshel stated, "The success of Operation Cast Lead in the densely populated Gaza Strip shows that an industrial military that coordinates operations among land, air and sea units, makes effective use of advanced technology, and shares intelligence and leads from the front can decisively defeat an asymmetrical enemy." He further noted, "Israel used a variety of tactics to outflank and defeat Hamas in its own territory. These included long-term planning, meticulous intelligence-gathering, deception and disinformation."<ref name='Aviation Week 2009-05-11'/> As a result of its poor performance, Hamas relieved at least two brigade commanders on Iranian advice, and reportedly stripped 100 fighters of their membership. The organization decided to initiate a thorough investigation of the conduct of its fighters during the operation.<ref name="jpost.com"/><ref>{{cite news |last=Issacharoff |first=Avi |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/hamas-dismisses-commanders-on-iran-order-1.277265 |title=Hamas dismisses commanders on Iran order |date=4 June 2009 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> Hamas' leadership modified its tactical doctrine. The Qassam Brigades intensified military training at its various training camps and military academy in the [[Nuseirat refugee camp]]. The new training was thought to be more offensive, with a focus on hitting the rear of an IDF force. [[Hezbollah]] operatives were suspected of involvement in the program. In contrast to the pre-war period, when Hamas openly displayed its capabilities, the nature of the program was kept classified.<ref name="jpost.com"/>
The Israeli army said it destroyed about 80% of the tunnels between Gaza and Egypt that were being used to bring in weapons and rocket components. Residents in Rafah said they cleared away debris and discovered that many of the tunnels were intact, though they acknowledged the destruction of many.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aqps7qdeyKE0&refer=home |title=Gaza Tunnel Owners Renew Smuggling Under Egypt Border (Update1) |publisher=Bloomberg.com |date=2009-01-21 |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100321154128/http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087 |archive-date=21 March 2010 }}</ref>
==Propaganda and psychological warfare==
===Hamas===
Before and during the conflict, Hamas' senior representatives released a number of statements designed to avert Israeli decision-makers from launching any military operation in Gaza and to cause demoralization among Israelis. Before the end of the pre-conflict ceasefire, Hamas boasted that it had countless surprises awaiting Israeli troops, should they advance.<ref name="Psychological Tricks to Demoralize the Enemy">{{Cite news |title=Psychological Tricks to Demoralize the Enemy |url=http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/0,1518,601694,00.html |work=[[Der Spiegel]] |date=16 January 2009}}</ref> Hamas representatives threatened on several occasions to abduct Israeli soldiers, and during the ground invasion tried to spread rumors that it actually had captured or killed more Israeli soldiers.<ref name="Israel's Gaza war adds psychological operations">{{cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna28608585 |archive-url=https://wayback.archive-it.org/all/20171012110759/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/28608585/ |archive-date=2017-10-12 |title=Israel's Gaza war adds psychological operations |publisher=MSNBC |date=2009-01-11 |url-status=live |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
On a video broadcast on Al-Aqsa TV on 10 January showing the names of Israeli towns hit by rockets, it was implied Tel-Aviv is the next target and that 'all options are open'.<ref name="Operation Cast Lead Update No 12">{{Cite news |title=Operation Cast Lead Update No 12 |url=http://www.rightsidenews.com/200901133351/global-terrorism/operation-cast-lead-update-no-12.html |publisher=IITC |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715185713/http://www.rightsidenews.com/200901133351/global-terrorism/operation-cast-lead-update-no-12.html |archive-date=15 July 2011}}</ref> Also, Hamas sent messages in Hebrew to Israeli citizens' mobile phones warning: "Rockets on all cities, shelters will not protect you."<ref name="Hamas leader killed in airstrike as Israelis reject ceasefire call">{{Cite news |title=Hamas leader killed in airstrike as Israelis reject ceasefire call |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5429904.ece |newspaper=[[The Times]] |date=2009-01-02 |location=London |first=James |last=Hider |access-date=2010-04-02}}{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref name="guardian-psychwar" />
Hamas instrumentalized the Israeli soldier [[Gilad Shalit]] as a form of psychological weapon, declaring that he had been wounded by Israeli fire, later announcing that his condition was no longer of interest to them.<ref name="Psychological Tricks to Demoralize the Enemy" />
According to IDF spokesman, Hamas' ruses in the battlefield included booby traps throughout Gaza's neighborhoods, such as mannequins placed at apartment entrances and rigged to explode when the soldiers approach.<ref name="Israel's Gaza war adds psychological operations" />
Arab television stations reported Hamas-provided statistics for Israeli casualties on the assumption that Israel is distorting its own figures of soldiers killed and wounded.<ref name="The unreported battle with Hamas: psychological warfare">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/the-unreported-battle-with-hamas-psychological-warfare-1.268007 |title=The unreported battle with Hamas: psychological warfare |author=Nir Hasson |author2=Yoav Stern |newspaper=Haaretz |date=13 January 2009 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref>
A study by the [[Center for Strategic and International Studies]] notes that Hamas propaganda both rejected Hamas responsibility for the fighting and used it to attack the Palestinian Authority.<ref name="AnthonyHCordesman" />
Dr. Tal Pavel from Israeli think-tank [[International Policy Institute for Counter-Terrorism]] (ICT) said that Hamas uses its Web sites to make comparisons between Israel and Nazi Germany, portraying Israel as a destructive, oppressive regime afraid of Hamas rockets raining on Tel Aviv.<ref name="The unreported battle with Hamas: psychological warfare" />
===Israel===
The day before the beginning of the offensive on 27 December the [[Israel Defense Forces|IDF]] pulled troops back from the border and used its radio channels to broadcast talk of a "lull" to achieve a disinformation coup to lure Hamas fighters out of hiding.<ref name="ap-msnbc-psych-war">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna28608585 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218164219/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/28608585/ |archive-date=2014-12-18 |title=Israel's Gaza war adds psychological operations |date=2009-01-11 |agency=Associated Press |work=[[NBC News]] |url-status=live |access-date=2009-02-19}}</ref>
A broadcaster in Islamic Jihad's Voice of Jerusalem radio station in Gaza City reported that IDF have been breaking into his station signal "least once an hour" during conflict intensification to broadcast messages to Gaza's population that their problems were due to Hamas. The Israelis also dropped leaflets with similar messages and contact info to report about the whereabouts of militant leaders and weapons caches.<ref name="ap-msnbc-psych-war" /> The leaflets also said, "The Israeli army will respond if the rocket fire continues."<ref name="guardian-psychwar">{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jan/03/israelandthepalestinians-middleeast |title=Text messages and phone calls add psychological aspect to warfare in Gaza |author=Hazem Balousha |author2=Toni O'Loughlin |date=2009-01-03 |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=2009-02-12 |location=London}}</ref> In war zones, leaflets warned local residents that they had to flee. It also warned residents that their homes would be targeted if they were located in an area of possible target.<ref name = "Jazeera 2009-01-03">{{Cite news |url=http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/01/20091316557303315.html |publisher=Al Jazeera |title=Israel continues Gaza assault |date=2009-01-03 |access-date=2009-01-03 |location=Doha, QA}}</ref> Dr. Yaniv Levitan of the [[University of Haifa]] said that the aim of the flyers was not to demoralize the civil population, but to implant recognition in hearts and minds that Hamas has failed, that there is an option of choosing another path.<ref name="The unreported battle with Hamas: psychological warfare" />
IDF spokespersons often reported that scores of demoralized Hamas fighters had been observed deserting. According to Ephraim Kam, deputy head of the Institute of National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University, the claim could not be confirmed but it strengthened the Israeli population's will to continue and undermined the confidence of Hamas in Gaza.<ref name="Psychological Tricks to Demoralize the Enemy" />
There was a mistrust of phone calls warning messages to people that they have "just minutes to evacuate before they bomb the house". According to a human rights lawyer at the [[Palestinian Center for Human Rights]] (PCHR), despite the hundreds of phone calls to families warning their house is about to be blown up, only 37 were destroyed, presumably as of 3 January date.<ref name="guardian-psychwar" />
==Criticism of IDF==
{{see also|Israeli war crimes}}
=== Collective punishment ===
The [[United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict]] found that Israel, at least in part, targeted the people of Gaza as a whole. The Mission gave its opinion that "the operations were in furtherance of an overall policy aimed at punishing the Gaza population for its resilience and for its apparent support for Hamas, and possibly with the intent of forcing a change in such support."<ref>[http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/12session/A-HRC-12-48.pdf "Goldstone Report"], paragr. 1680–81</ref> Judge Goldstone later at least partially resiled from this conclusion.
===Disproportionate force===
Israel was widely criticized by human rights groups for using heavy firepower and causing hundreds of civilian casualties.<ref name="BBC 2010-01-29">{{cite news |title=Goldstone report: Israel and Palestinians respond to UN |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8487301.stm |access-date=27 January 2011 |work=BBC News |date=29 January 2010}}</ref> A group of soldiers who took part in the conflict echoed the criticism through both the Israeli NGO [[Breaking the Silence (non-governmental organization)|Breaking the Silence]] and a special report by Israeli filmmaker [[Nurit Kedar]] that was shown on Britain's [[Channel 4]] in January 2011.<ref name="The Telegraph 2011-01-23"/><ref>{{cite news |title=Israel soldiers speak out on Gaza |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8149464.stm |access-date=30 January 2011 |work=BBC News |date=15 July 2009}}</ref> Israel was accused of having a deliberate policy of [[military necessity|disproportionate force]] aimed at the civilian population.<ref name="BBC 2009-09-15">{{cite news |title=Key excerpts: UN Gaza report |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8257446.stm |access-date=27 January 2011 |work=BBC News |date=15 September 2009}}</ref> Israel has said that operational orders emphasized [[proportionality (international humanitarian law)|proportionality]] and humanity while the importance of [[Civilian casualty ratio#Israel in the Gaza War|minimising harm]] to civilians was made clear to soldiers.<ref name="The Telegraph 2011-01-23">{{cite news |title=Israel aimed to 'cleanse' Gaza neighbourhoods in 2008 invasion |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/8276943/Israel-aimed-to-cleanse-Gaza-neighbourhoods-in-2008-invasion.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/8276943/Israel-aimed-to-cleanse-Gaza-neighbourhoods-in-2008-invasion.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |access-date=27 January 2011 |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=23 January 2011 |location=London |first=Alex |last=Thomson}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Retired U.S. Army colonel [[Douglas Macgregor]] gave his opinion as: "They went in heavy, with lots of firepower. But at the same time, because of good intel and other improvements, they were able to be selective and cut down on collateral damage."<ref name="DefenseNews 2009-03-23">{{Cite news |first=Barbara |last=Opall-Rome |title=Adapting Artillery to Urban War |date=2009-03-23 |url=http://www.defensenews.com/story.php?i=4001228 |work=Defense News |access-date=2009-08-06}} {{dead link|date=August 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
===IDF use of human shields===
{{see also|Human shields in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict#Use by Israeli forces}}
On 24 March, a report from the UN team responsible for the protection of children in war zones was released: it found "hundreds" of violations of the rights of children and accused Israeli soldiers of using children as [[human shields]], bulldozing a home with a woman and child still inside, and shelling a building they had ordered civilians into a day earlier.<ref name="unchildren">{{cite news |title=Israel army 'used human shields' |work=BBC News |date=2009-03-24 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7960824.stm}}</ref> One case involved using an 11-year-old boy as a human shield, by forcing him to enter suspected buildings first and also inspect bags. The report also mentioned the boy was used as a shield when Israeli soldiers came under fire.<ref name="unchildren"/><ref name='BShield'>{{cite news |first=Donald |last=Macintyre |title=UN accuses Israeli troops of using boy, 11, as human shield |date=2009-03-24 |newspaper=Belfast Telegraph |url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/world-news/un-accuses-israeli-troops-of-using-boy-11-as-human-shield-14240116.html |access-date=2009-03-26}}</ref> ''[[The Guardian]]'' has also received testimony from three Palestinian brothers aged 14, 15, and 16, who all claimed to have been used as human shields.<ref name="GShield">{{cite video |people=Clancy Chassay |date=2009-03-23 |title=Palestinian brothers: Israel used us as human shields in Gaza war |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/23/gaza-human-shields-claim |work=The Guardian |location=London |access-date=2010-05-05}}</ref>
The UK newspaper ''[[The Guardian]]'' conducted an investigation of its own, which, according to the paper, uncovered evidence of war crimes including the use of Palestinian children as human shields.<ref name=":0"/> An Israeli military court later convicted two Israeli soldiers of using human shields,<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-11462635|title=IDF soldiers guilty of Gaza abuse|date=2010-10-03|work=BBC News|access-date=2020-03-15|language=en-GB}}</ref> which was outlawed by the Israeli Supreme court in 2005.<ref name=":0">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/23/israel-gaza-war-crimes-guardian |work=The Guardian |location=London |title=Guardian investigation uncovers evidence of alleged Israeli war crimes in Gaza |first=Clancy |last=Chassay |date=2009-03-24 |access-date=2010-05-05}}</ref>
The UN fact-finding mission investigated four incidents in which Palestinian civilians were coerced, blindfolded, handcuffed and at gunpoint to enter houses ahead of Israeli soldiers during military operations. The mission confirmed the continued use of this practice with published testimonies of Israeli soldiers who had taken part in the military operations. The mission concluded that these practices amounted to using civilians as human shields in breach of international law. Some civilians were also questioned under threat of death or injury to extract information about Palestinian combatants and tunnels, constituting a further violation of international humanitarian law.<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/>
===White phosphorus===
From 5 January, reports emerged of use by Israel of [[white phosphorus]] during the offensive, which was initially denied by Israel.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5575070.ece |title=Israel admits using white phosphorus in attacks on Gaza |newspaper=The Times |date=24 January 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511023004/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5575070.ece|archive-date=11 May 2011|first1=James|last1=Hider|first2=Sheera|last2=Frenkel|access-date=25 August 2014}}</ref> There were numerous reports of its use by the IDF during the conflict. On 12 January, it was reported that more than 50 phosphorus burns victims were in [[Nasser Hospital]]. On 16 January the [[United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East|UNRWA]] headquarters was hit with phosphorus munitions.<ref name="Israel admits using white phosphorus in attacks on Gaza" /> As a result of the hit, the compound was set ablaze.<ref name="Israel reprimands top officers over UN compound strike" /> On completion of the three-day Israeli withdrawal (21 January) an Israeli military spokeswoman said that shells containing phosphorus had been used in Gaza but said that they were used legally as a method to provide a smokescreen.<ref name="Israel admits using white phosphorus in attacks on Gaza">[https://web.archive.org/web/20110511023004/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5575070.ece "Israel admits using white phosphorus in attacks on Gaza"] ''The Times'' 24 January 2009.{{subscription required}}</ref> The IDF reiterated their position on 13 January saying that it used weapons "in compliance with international law, while strictly observing that they be used according to the type of combat and its characteristics".<ref>{{cite news |agency=Associated Press |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=129152 |title=IDF white phosphorus use not illegal |date=13 January 2009 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> On 25 March 2009, the [[United States]]-based human rights organization [[Human Rights Watch]] published a 71-page report titled "Rain of Fire, Israel's Unlawful Use of White Phosphorus in Gaza" and said that Israel's usage of the weapon was illegal.<ref name=RainofFire>{{cite journal |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2009/03/25/rain-fire |title=Rain of Fire: Israel's Unlawful Use of White Phosphorus in Gaza |journal=Human Rights Watch |date=25 March 2009 |access-date=6 June 2012|last1=Esveld |first1=Bill Van }} [https://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/iopt0309webwcover.pdf PDF]</ref> Donatella Rovera, Amnesty's researcher on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories said that such extensive use of this weapon in Gaza's densely populated residential neighbourhoods is inherently indiscriminate. "Its repeated use in this manner, despite evidence of its indiscriminate effects and its toll on civilians, is a war crime", she said.<ref>[https://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/israeli-armys-use-white-phosphorus-gaza-clear-undeniable-20090119 "Israel used white phosphorus in Gaza civilian areas"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150208051411/http://www.amnesty.org/en/news-and-updates/news/israeli-armys-use-white-phosphorus-gaza-clear-undeniable-20090119 |date=8 February 2015 }}. Amnesty International (19 January 2009) Retrieved 30 May 2011</ref> The Goldstone report accepted that white phosphorus is not illegal under international law but did find that the Israelis were "systematically reckless in determining its use in built-up areas". It also called for serious consideration to be given to the banning of its use as an obscurant.<ref name="Goldstone Report" />
[[File:Aljazeeraasset-GAZAPHOSPHD110109738.ogv|thumbnail|Al Jazeera video. Burning Israeli white phosphorus clusters in the streets of Gaza on 11 January 2009.<br />[[Commons:Videos by Al Jazeera of the 2008-2009 Gaza War|Videos by Al Jazeera of the 2008–2009 Gaza War]]]]
After watching footage of Israeli troop deployments on television, a British soldier who completed numerous combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan with the Intelligence Corps defended the Israeli Army's use of white phosphorus. The soldier noted, "White phosphorus is used because it provides an instant smokescreen, other munitions can provide a smokescreen but the effect is not instant. Faced with overwhelming enemy fire and wounded comrades, every commander would choose to screen his men instantly, to do otherwise would be negligent."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/3286561/a-british-soldiers-view-of-operation-cast-lead.thtml |title=A British soldier's view of Operation Cast Lead |newspaper=The Spectator |access-date=2010-06-05 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417014029/http://www.spectator.co.uk/coffeehouse/3286561/a-british-soldiers-view-of-operation-cast-lead.thtml |archive-date=17 April 2009}}</ref>
Colonel Lane, a military expert testifying in front of the fact-finding mission in July 2009, told that white phosphorus is used for smoke generation to hide from the enemy. He stated, "The quality of smoke produced by white phosphorus is superb; if you want real smoke for real coverage, white phosphorus will give it to you."<ref name="Public hearings – Geneva, Afternoon Session of 7 July 2009">[http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/specialsession/9/docs/2009.07.07PM_Session.doc "Public hearings – Geneva, Afternoon Session of 7 July 2009"], UNHRC {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219084642/http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/specialsession/9/docs/2009.07.07PM_Session.doc |date=19 February 2011 }}</ref>
Professor Newton, expert in laws of armed conflict testifying in front of the committee, said that in an urban area, where potential perils are snipers, explosive devices and trip wires, one effective way to mask forces' movement is by white phosphorus. In certain cases, he added, such choice of means would be less harmful for civilian population than other munitions, provided that the use of white phosphorus withstands the proportionality test. In discussing the principle of proportionality he said that the legality of using white phosphorus in an urban setting could only be decided on a case-by-case basis taking into account "the precise circumstances of its use, not in general, generically, but based on that target, at that time". He stressed that the humanitarian implications were vital in this assessment giving the example that using white phosphorus on a school yard would have different implications to its use on another area. He also said that in his view white phosphorus munition is neither chemical nor incendiary weapon and is not intended to cause damage. He said its use was not prohibited by the Chemical Weapons Convention.<ref name="Public hearings – Geneva, Afternoon Session of 7 July 2009"/>
An article by Mark Cantora examining the legal implications of the use of white phosphorus munitions by the IDF, published in 2010 in the ''[[Gonzaga Journal of International Law]]'', argues that Israel's use of white phosphorus in Gaza was technically legal under existing international humanitarian laws and "Therefore, it is imperative for the international community to convene a White Phosphorus Convention Conference in order to address these issues and fill this substantial gap in international humanitarian law."<ref>Mark Cantora, Israel and White Phosphorus During Operation Cast Lead: A Case Study in Adherence to Inadequate Humanitarian Laws, 13:1 ''Gonzaga Journal of International Law'' (2010), available at {{cite web |url=http://www.gonzagajil.org/content/view/194/26/ |title=Gonzaga Journal of International Law - Israel and White Phosphorus During Operation Cast Lead: A Case Study in Adherence to Inadequate |access-date=2010-04-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100329005840/http://www.gonzagajil.org/content/view/194/26/ |archive-date=29 March 2010 }}</ref>
===Dense inert metal explosives (DIME)===
[[Dense inert metal explosive]] (DIME) is a type of bomb developed to minimize collateral damage.<ref name=Haaretz_new_weapon>Amira Hass, [http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/norwegian-doctor-israel-used-new-type-of-weapon-in-gaza-1.268394 "Norwegian doctor: Israel used new type of weapon in Gaza"]. ''Haaretz'', 19 January 2009</ref> Casualties show unusual injuries. A military expert working for [[Human Rights Watch]] said judging by the nature of the wounds and descriptions given by Gazans made it seem likely that Israel used DIME weapons. A Norwegian doctor who worked at Gaza's Shifa Hospital said that pressure waves generated by missile hits are likely the cause and produced by DIME weapons.<ref name="Haaretz_new_weapon" /> Another Norwegian doctor said they had "clear evidence that the Israelis are using a new type of very high explosive weapons which are called Dense Inert Metal Explosive".<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090204205004/http://hindu.com/2009/01/07/stories/2009010754191700.htm "40 die in Israeli strike at school-Tel Aviv accused of using 'unconventional weapons'"]. Atul Aneja, ''The Hindu'', 7 January 2009</ref>
Colonel Lane, military expert testifying in front of the fact-finding mission in July 2009, told the committee that through his studies, no actual proof was found that DIME rounds were used, but tungsten, iron, and sulfur were found in samples analyzed in a forensic lab. He is of the view that some weapons systems used in the conflict had some sort of DIME component to reduce the effect on the ground. Colonel Lane explained that the idea behind a Focused Lethality Munition (FLM), which is an example of a DIME munition, is that the fragments produced stay within a safety radius of about 6 meters, so anybody outside that radius is safe, while those within the area of dispersal will be affected severely. He commented on the documentations where medics described unusual amputations saying that he was no medical expert, but the use of a metal like tungsten and cobalt at short distances would likely have that effect.<ref name=autogenerated4>{{Cite web|url=http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/specialsession/9/docs/2009.07.07PM_Session.doc|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110219084642/http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/specialsession/9/docs/2009.07.07PM_Session.doc|title=OHCHR.org|archive-date=19 February 2011}}</ref>
The [[Goldstone Report]] wrote that the Mission found that the allegations that DIME weapons were used by Israeli armed forces required further clarification and they were unable to ascertain their usage, though it received reports from Palestinian and foreign doctors who had operated in Gaza during the military operations of a high percentage of patients with injuries compatible with their impact. It stated that the "focused lethality" reportedly pursued in DIME weapons could be seen as enhancing compliance with the principle of distinction between civilian and military objects. The report added that as it currently stands, DIME weapons and weapons armed with heavy metal are not prohibited under international law, but do raise specific health concerns.<ref name="Goldstone Report">[http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/12session/A-HRC-12-48.pdf Goldstone report], UNHRC, para. 49</ref>
An Amnesty International report called on Israel to confirm or deny its use of DIME in order to facilitate the treatment of those injured in the conflict.<ref name="AA">[https://www.amnesty.org/es/documents/mde15/012/2009/es/ "Fuelling conflict: foreign arms supplies to Israel/Gaza"], Amnesty International, p. 17</ref> After reports of [[Gaza–Israel conflict#2006|similar cases in 2006]], the IDF had denied the use of DIME weapons.<ref>{{cite news |author=Rory McCarthy |date=17 October 2006 |newspaper=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2006/oct/17/israel1 |title=Gaza doctors say patients suffering mystery injuries after Israeli Attacks}}</ref>
===Accusations of misconduct by IDF soldiers===
Testimonies from Israeli soldiers allegedly admitting indiscriminate killings of civilians, as well as vandalizing homes, were reported in March 2009.<ref name="bbc_gaza_abuses">{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7952603.stm |title=BBC: Israel troops admit Gaza abuses |work=BBC News |date=2009-03-19 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5939611.ece |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090320003000/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/middle_east/article5939611.ece |url-status=dead |archive-date=20 March 2009 |newspaper=The Times |title=Israeli soldiers admit to deliberate killing of Gaza civilians |author=James Hider}}{{subscription required}}</ref><ref name="Israel Disputes Soldiers' Accounts of Gaza Abuses">{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/28/world/middleeast/28israel.html?_r=2&hp |title=Israel Disputes Soldiers' Accounts of Gaza Abuses |newspaper=The New York Times |date=27 March 2009 |first=Ethan |last=Bronner |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref> Soon after the publication of the testimonies, reports implying that the testimonies were based on hearsay and not on the firsthand experience started to circulate.<ref name="Israel Disputes Soldiers' Accounts of Gaza Abuses" /> At the same time, another kind of evidence was collected from several soldiers who took part in the fighting, that rebutted claims of immoral conduct on the military's part during Gaza War.<ref name="IDF soldiers rebut claims of immoral conduct in Gaza">{{Cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3689388,00.html |title=Israel IDF soldiers rebut claims of immoral conduct in Gaza |publisher=Ynetnews |date=19 March 2009}}</ref> Following investigations, the IDF issued an official report, concluding that alleged cases of deliberate shooting at civilians did not take place.<ref name="Gaza offensive: Israeli military says no war crimes committed">{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/mar/31/israeli-military-denies-war-crimes-gaza |title=Gaza offensive: Israeli military says no war crimes committed |newspaper=The Guardian |date=31 March 2009 |location=London |first=Helen |last=Pidd |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref> Nine Israeli rights groups reacting to the closure of the investigation issued a joint statement calling for an "independent nonpartisan investigative body to be established to look into all Israeli army activity" in Gaza.<ref name="Gaza offensive: Israeli military says no war crimes committed" />
In July 2009, the Israeli NGO Breaking the Silence published testimony from 26 soldiers (two junior officers and the rest enlisted personnel) who took part in the Gaza assault, claiming that the IDF used Gazans as human shields, improperly fired incendiary white phosphorus shells over civilian areas and used overwhelming firepower that caused needless deaths and destruction.<ref name="Europeans funding 'Breaking the Silence'">{{cite news |author=Yaakov Katz |author2=Herb Keinon |date=17 July 2009 |title=Europeans funding 'Breaking the Silence' |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |url=http://www.jpost.com/International/Europeans-funding-Breaking-the-Silence}}</ref><ref name="Testimonies from Operation Cast Lead, Gaza 2009">[http://www.shovrimshtika.org/oferet/ENGLISH_oferet.pdf "Soldiers' Testimonies from Operation Cast Lead, Gaza 2009"], Breaking the Silence, 2009-07-15 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091013032055/http://www.shovrimshtika.org/oferet/ENGLISH_oferet.pdf |date=13 October 2009 }}</ref> The report did not represent a cross-section of the army, but rather they were troops who had approached the group or were reached through acquaintances of NGO members.<ref name="Europeans funding 'Breaking the Silence'" /> The accusations were made by anonymous people who claimed that they were reserves soldiers and whose faces had been blurred in the filmed talks. An Israeli military spokesperson dismissed the testimonies as anonymous hearsay and questioned why Breaking the Silence had not handed over its findings before the media had been informed. The Israeli military said some allegations of misconduct had turned out to be second or third-hand accounts and the result of recycled rumours.<ref name="BTS-2009-07-15">{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8151336.stm |title=Breaking silence on Gaza abuses |date=2009-07-15 |work=BBC News |access-date=2009-07-18}}</ref><ref name="IDF soldiers give testimonies to counter Gaza war crimes claims">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-soldiers-give-testimonies-to-counter-gaza-war-crimes-claims-1.280142 |title=IDF soldiers give testimonies to counter Gaza war crimes claims |author=Cnaan Liphshiz |newspaper=Haaretz |date=16 July 2009 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> Breaking the Silence state that their methodology includes the verification of all information by cross-referencing the testimonies it collects and that published material has been confirmed by a number of testimonies, from several different points of view. A representative stated "the personal details of the soldiers quoted in the collection, and the exact location of the incidents described in the testimonies, would readily be made available to any official and independent investigation of the events, as long as the identity of the testifiers did not become public."<ref name="Guardian-Naaman">{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/jul/17/israel-gaza-breaking-silence |title=Israel needs the truth about Cast Lead |last=Na'aman |first=Oded |date=2009-07-17 |access-date=2009-07-18 |work=The Guardian |location=London}}</ref> A soldier who described using Gazans as human shields told in an interview to ''Haaretz'' that he had not seen Palestinians being used as human shields but had been told by his commanders that this occurred.<ref name="Barak: Criticism of IDF should be directed at me">{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/barak-criticism-of-idf-should-be-directed-at-me-1.280018 |title=Barak: Criticism of IDF should be directed at me |author=Amos Harel |newspaper=Haaretz |date=15 July 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
In response to the report, a dozen English-speaking reservists who served in Gaza delivered signed, on-camera counter-testimonies via the SoldiersSpeakOut group, about Hamas' "use of Gazans as human shields and the measures the IDF took to protect Arab civilians".<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/idf-soldiers-give-testimonies-to-counter-gaza-war-crimes-claims-1.280142 |title=IDF soldiers give testimonies to counter Gaza war crimes claims |author=Cnaan Liphshiz |work=Haaretz |date=16 July 2009 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref><ref name="'Breaking the Silence' vs. 'Soldiers Speak Out' on Cast Lead">{{cite news |author=Maayana Miskin |url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/132447 |title='Breaking the Silence' vs. 'Soldiers Speak Out' on Cast Lead |publisher=Arutz Sheva |date=17 July 2009}}</ref> The special report by Israeli filmmaker Nurit Kedar shown on Channel 4 detailed similar allegations by former IDF soldiers that included vandalism and misconduct by Israeli troops.<ref name="The Telegraph 2011-01-23"/>
Colonel [[Richard Kemp]], former commander of [[War in Afghanistan (2001–present)|British forces in Afghanistan]], in his address to the UNHRC asserted that during the conflict, the Israel Defense Forces "did more to safeguard the rights of civilians in a combat zone than any other army in the history of warfare" and that Palestinian civilian casualties were a consequence of Hamas' way of fighting, which involved using human shields as a matter of policy, and deliberate attempts to sacrifice their own civilians. He added that Israel took extraordinary measures to give Gaza civilians notice of targeted areas and aborted potentially effective missions in order to prevent civilian casualties.<ref name="UNHRC endorses Goldstone's Gaza report by large majority">{{cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/International/Mistakes-are-not-war-crimes |title='Mistakes are not war crimes': UNHRC endorses Goldstone |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=16 October 2009}}</ref>
====Prosecutions====
The first Israeli soldier to be prosecuted for actions committed during the war was a [[Givati Brigade]] soldier who stole a Visa credit card from a Palestinian home and used it to withdraw [[Israeli new shekel|NIS]] 1,600 ([[United States dollar|$]]405). He was arrested and tried before the Southern Command Military Court on charges of looting, credit card fraud, and indecent conduct. He was found guilty and sentenced to seven and a half months in military prison.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3760488,00.html "Soldier who stole credit card during Gaza op jailed"]. Ynetnews (1995-06-20). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref>
In a report submitted to the UN in January 2010, the IDF stated that two senior officers were disciplined for authorizing an artillery attack in violation of rules against their near populated areas. Several artillery shells hit the UNRWA compound in Tel al-Hawa.<ref name="IDF downplays action against officers" /><ref name="GAZA OPERATION INVESTIGATIONS: AN UPDATE">[http://www.haaretz.com/hasite/images/iht_daily/D290110/Gaza%20Operation%20Investigations%20An%20Update.pdf "Gaza operation investigations: An update"], [[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Israel)|Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs]], January 2010, para. 100, p. 29</ref> During the attack on 15 January 2009, the compound was set ablaze by white phosphorus shells.<ref name="Goldstone Report" /> The officers involved were identified as [[Gaza Division]] Commander Brigadier-General [[Eyal Eisenberg]] and [[Givati Brigade]] Commander Colonel Ilan Malka.<ref name="Israel reprimands top officers over UN compound strike">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8490646.stm "Israel reprimands top officers over UN compound strike"], BBC News, 1 February 2010</ref> An IDF internal investigation concluded that the firing of the shells violated the IDF orders limiting the use of artillery fire near populated areas and endangered human life.<ref name="GAZA OPERATION INVESTIGATIONS: AN UPDATE" /> IDF sources added later that the shells had been fired to create cover to assist in the extrication of IDF troops, some of whom were wounded, from an area where Hamas held a superior position.<ref name="IDF downplays action against officers">{{cite news |title=IDF downplays action against officers |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/idf-downplays-action-against-officers-1.262574 |author=Anshel Pfeffer |newspaper=Haaretz |date=2 February 2010 |access-date=9 April 2012}}</ref> An Israeli Government spokesman stated that in this particular case they had found no evidence of criminal wrongdoing and so had not referred the case to criminal investigation.<ref name="Israel reprimands top officers over UN compound strike" />
In October 2010, Colonel Ilan Malka was interrogated by [[Military Police Corps (Israel)|Israeli military police]] over the [[Zeitoun killings]], and a criminal investigation was opened. Malka was suspected of authorizing an airstrike on a building that left numerous members of the Samouni family dead. His promotion to the rank of brigadier-general was suspended due to the investigation. Malka told investigators that he was unaware of the presence of civilians.<ref name="HRW">{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/11/26/israel-soldiers-punishment-using-boy-human-shield-inadequate |title=Israel: Soldiers' Punishment for Using Boy as 'Human Shield' Inadequate |publisher=Human Rights Watch |date=2010-11-26 |access-date=2011-06-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3973310,00.html |title=IDF commander questioned over Gaza killing |newspaper=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2012-10-07|last1=Greenberg |first1=Hanan }}</ref> He was eventually reprimanded over the incident, but it was decided not to indict him. No other charges were brought over this incident. The IDF denied that they were targeting civilians. Residents reported that while [[Hamas]] members had launched rockets from more than a mile away from the residents, there was "no active Hamas resistance in the immediate vicinity".<ref name="arabclan">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/10/world/middleeast/10gaza.html?hp |access-date=2009-02-07 |title=For Arab Clan, Days of Agony in a Cross-Fire |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=2009-01-09 |first=Taghreed |last=El-Khodary}}</ref> The Palestinian Center for Human Rights called the result "disgraceful" and Btselem stated the need for an external investigator to look into IDF actions during Cast Lead.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/03/world/middleeast/israel-military-clears-soldiers-in-deaths-of-gaza-civilians.html |last=Kershner |first=Isabel |title=Israel Military Clears Soldiers in Deaths of Gaza Civilians |newspaper=The New York Times |access-date=2 May 2012 |date=2012-05-02}}</ref>
In June 2010, [[Military Advocate General|Chief Advocate General]] [[Avichai Mandelblit]] summoned a recently discharged Givati Brigade sniper for a special hearing. The soldier was suspected of opening fire on Palestinian civilians when a group of 30 Palestinians that included women and children waving a white flag, approached an IDF position. The incident, which occurred on 4 January 2009, resulted in the death of a non-combatant. Mandelblit decided to indict the soldier on a charge of manslaughter, despite contradictory testimony and the fact that IDF investigators could not confirm that the soldier was responsible for the death.<ref>{{cite news |title=IDF indicts Cast Lead soldier |author=Yaakov Katz |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=180601 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=6 July 2010 |access-date=18 June 2011}}</ref>
In July 2010, the officer who authorized the airstrike on the Ibrahim al-Maqadna Mosque was subjected to disciplinary action, as shrapnel caused "unintentional injuries" to civilians inside. The IDF said that the officer "failed to exercise appropriate judgement", and that he would not be allowed to serve in similar positions of command in the future. Another Israeli officer was also reprimanded for allowing a Palestinian man to enter a building to persuade Hamas militants sheltering inside to leave.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/07/world/middleeast/07mideast.html |work=The New York Times |first=Isabel |last=Kershner |title=Indictments in Gaza War Are Announced |date=2010-07-06}}</ref>
In November 2010, two Givati Brigade Staff Sergeants were convicted by the Southern Command Military Court of using a Palestinian boy as a human shield. The soldiers had been accused of forcing nine-year-old Majed R. at gunpoint to open bags suspected of containing bombs in the [[Tel al-Hawa]] neighborhood. Both soldiers were demoted one rank and given three-month suspended sentences.<ref name="HRW"/>
According to the [[United States Department of State|U.S. State Department]]'s 2010 Human Rights Report, the [[Military Advocate General]] investigated over 150 wartime incidents, including those mentioned in the Goldstone Report. As of July, the Military Advocate General launched 47 criminal investigations into the conduct of IDF personnel, and completed a significant number of those.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2010/nea/154463.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110413173255/http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2010/nea/154463.htm |archive-date=2011-04-13 |title=2010 Human Rights Report: Israel and the occupied territories |publisher=United States Department of State |date=2011-04-08 |access-date=2014-08-17}}</ref>
On 1 April 2011, Judge [[Richard Goldstone]], the lead author of the UN report on the conflict, published a piece in ''[[The Washington Post]]'' titled 'Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and war crimes'. Goldstone noted that the subsequent investigations conducted by Israel "indicate that civilians were not intentionally targeted as a matter of policy" while "the crimes allegedly committed by Hamas were intentional goes without saying." He further expressed regret "that our fact-finding mission did not have such evidence explaining the circumstances in which we said civilians in Gaza were targeted, because it probably would have influenced our findings about intentionality and war crimes."<ref name="WP0401">{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/reconsidering-the-goldstone-report-on-israel-and-war-crimes/2011/04/01/AFg111JC_story.html |title=Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and war crimes' |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=2011-04-01 |author=Richard Goldstone |access-date=2011-04-01}}</ref> The other principal authors of the UN report, [[Hina Jilani]], [[Christine Chinkin]] and [[Desmond Travers]], have rejected Goldstone's reassessment arguing that there is "no justification for any demand or expectation for reconsideration of the report as nothing of substance has appeared that would in any way change the context, findings or conclusions of that report with respect to any of the parties to the Gaza conflict".<ref name="afp1404">{{cite news |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iAXwmnGEbQBBCvdn82UdbTFpnECA?docId=CNG.81e3f073a7ff60182e936e010de882cd.791 |title=Authors reject calls to retract Goldstone report on Gaza |date=2011-04-14 |agency=AFP |access-date=17 April 2011 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130103001534/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5iAXwmnGEbQBBCvdn82UdbTFpnECA?docId=CNG.81e3f073a7ff60182e936e010de882cd.791 |archive-date=3 January 2013 }}</ref><ref name="g2011-04-14">{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2011/apr/14/goldstone-report-statement-un-gaza |title=Goldstone report: Statement issued by members of UN mission on Gaza war |author=Hina Jilani, Christine Chinkin and Desmond Travers |date=2011-04-14 |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=17 April 2011 |location=London}}</ref>
===Intent to commit war crimes===
Professor Jerome Slater argues that in the months preceding the war, several top Israeli officials had made statements that can be construed as intentions to violate the [[laws of war]]. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert had said "if there is shooting at the residents of the south, there will be a harsh Israeli response that is disproportionate." This remark was criticized by [[Richard Falk]] as a "blatant repudiation of" [[proportionality in International Humanitarian Law]].<ref name=slater/> In October 2008, Israeli general [[Gadi Eisenkot]] had said that Israel "will wield disproportionate power against every [[village]] from which shots are fired on Israel, and cause immense damage and destruction. ... From our perspective, these are military bases."<ref name=slater/>
==Criticism of Palestinian factions==
===Civilians as human shields===
{{see also|Human shields in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict#Use by Palestinian forces}}
[[Amnesty International]]'s investigation of these claims found no evidence that Hamas or any other Palestinian militant group had 'directed the movement of civilians to shield military objectives from attacks.' It did find that Israeli soldiers had deployed Palestinian civilians and children to shield themselves.<ref name="NF2018">[[Norman Finkelstein]],[https://books.google.com/books?id=qo84DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA70 ''Gaza: An Inquest into Its Martyrdom,''] [[University of California Press]], 2018 pp. 68–81 [70–71]</ref><ref>{{citation|url=https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/48000/mde150152009en.pdf|title=Israel/Gaza – Operation "Cast Lead": 22 days of death and destruction|publisher=Amnesty International|date=2 July 2009}}</ref>
Israeli Air Force videos allegedly show terrorists using groups of children as cover to escape from combat areas and joining groups of children.<ref name="ReferenceC">{{cite web |title=Hamas and the Terrorist Threat from the Gaza Strip: The Main Findings of the Goldstone Report Versus the Factual Findings |publisher=Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center |date=March 2010 |url=http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/g_report_e1.pdf |access-date=14 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110813152033/http://www.terrorism-info.org.il/malam_multimedia/English/eng_n/pdf/g_report_e1.pdf |archive-date=13 August 2011}} Hamas and the Terrorist Threat from the Gaza Strip The Main Findings of the Goldstone ReportVersus the Factual Findings, [[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center]].</ref>
The commander of the military-terrorist wing of the PFLP-GC in the Gaza Strip stated in an interview that some areas did not present a problem because of the "population and building density" that would "provide the resistance with a shield".<ref name="ReferenceC" />
Professor Newton,{{who|reason=What is his full name and what institution is he a professor of?|date=May 2021}} an expert in laws of armed conflict testifying in front of a United Nations Fact Finding Mission, criticized a statement by a Hamas brigade commander who said, "The entire people of Gaza are the combatants and therefore, it is appropriate for us to issue warnings and then whether – if, even if they disregard them, to occupy their basement or their house or their backyard." Professor Newton stated that the legal obligation was to never commingle civilian and military objectives.<ref name="Public hearings – Geneva, Afternoon Session of 7 July 2009"/>
''[[The New York Times]]'' quotes a study published by the Israel-based [[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center]], charging Hamas with methodically building its military infrastructure in the heart of population centers. According to the study, Hamas not only hides among the population, but has made a main component of its combat strategy "channeling" the army into the densely populated areas to fight.<ref name=nytimes_study>{{Cite news |title=Warnings Not Enough for Gaza Families |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/06/world/middleeast/06scene.html?_r=1&hp |date=6 January 2009 |newspaper=The New York Times |first1=Taghreed |last1=El-Khodary |first2=Isabel |last2=Kershner |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref> During the Gaza War, Hamas invested great effort in preventing civilians from leaving neighborhoods that were in the line of fire and letting them flee to the south of the Strip.<ref name="Cracks in Hamas">{{Cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/JerusalemReport/Article.aspx?id=129784 |title=Cracks in Hamas |date=2009-01-18 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Report |author=Ehud Ya'ari |access-date=6 June 2012}}</ref>
After Israeli forces fired shells near a UN school in Gaza killing around 30 people, Israel's military said the shelling was in response to mortar fire from within the school and asserted that Hamas were using civilians as cover. They stated that the dead near the school included Hamas members of a rocket launching cell. Two residents of the area confirmed that a group of militants were firing mortar shells from near the school and identified two of the victims as Hamas militants.<ref>{{cite news |title=Israel OK's Gaza "Humanitarian Corridor" |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israel-oks-gaza-humanitarian-corridor/ |work=CBS News |access-date=4 November 2009}}</ref>
The Goldstone report found indications that Palestinian armed groups launched rockets from urban areas. The Mission was not able to obtain any direct evidence of specific intent of shielding the rocket launchers from counterstrokes by the Israeli armed forces.<ref name=UNreportp146>[http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/09/15/UNFFMGCReport.pdf ''Goldstone report''], pp. 146–148 ,paragraph 477–486, 15 September 2009</ref> From a legal perspective, the report said that the launching of attacks close to civilian buildings would have unnecessarily exposed the civilian population of Gaza and violated the customary rules of international humanitarian law and the right to life of the endangered civilians.<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/>
The Goldstone report concluded that there was evidence of the presence of Palestinian armed groups in residential areas. The report noted that because of the densely populated nature of the northern half of the Gaza strip, once the Israeli forces gained control of the outlying areas in the first few days of the ground invasion, most, if not all, locations still accessible to the Palestinian militants would have been in urban areas. It would be difficult to avoid mixing with the civilian population in the small and overcrowded Gaza Strip. The report concluded that the Israeli Government had not produced any evidence to support its allegation that Palestinian combatants "mingle routinely with civilians in order to cover their movements".<ref name=UNreportp146/>
The pro-Israel group [[NGO Monitor]] said the conclusions were false and largely based on unverified claims made by NGOs.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4145191,00.html |title=Should Goldstone be forgiven? |newspaper=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2014-08-17|last1=Gerstenfeld |first1=Manfred }}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=The Goldstone Report 'Reconsidered': A Critical Analysis |isbn=978-965-91793-0-5 |date=2011-09-20 |last1=Steinberg |first1=Gerald M. |last2=Hertzber |first2=Anne |publisher=NGO Monitor/Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs }}</ref>
===Combatant use of civilian clothes===
A ''New York Times'' journalist asserted that Hamas militants were fighting in civilian clothes.<ref name=nytimestraps/> Some NGO reports suggested that in general members of Palestinian armed groups did not wear military uniforms and mixed with the civilian population.<ref name=UNreportp146/>
The UN Fact Finding Mission (Goldstone Mission), however, concluded in its report: "While reports reviewed by the Mission credibly indicate that members of Palestinian armed groups were not always dressed in a way that distinguished them from civilians, the Mission found no evidence that Palestinian combatants mingled with the civilian population with the intention of shielding themselves from attack."<ref name=UNreportp146/>
===Military use of medical facilities and uniforms===
An IDF investigation concluded that Hamas forced the [[International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement|Red Crescent]] to hand over medic and nurse uniforms for its operatives and commandeered ambulances for fighters transportation during the War. Palestinian civilians living in Gaza detailed Hamas' attempts to hijack ambulances and the wearing of paramedic uniforms by Hamas fighters. An ambulance driver registered with and trained by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society spoke of Hamas' efforts to "lure the ambulances into the heart of a battle to transport fighters to safety" and the hijacking of the al-Quds Hospital's fleet of ambulances.<ref name=autogenerated3>{{cite news |url=http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=130344 |title=Maximum 600 Palestinians died in Gaza |date=2009-01-22 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=6 June 2012}}</ref><ref name=JpostHaniyehHid>{{cite news |last=Katz |first=Yaakov |title=Haniyeh hid in hospital during Gaza op |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=139895 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2009-04-22}}</ref><ref name="Hamas tried to hijack ambulances during Gaza war">{{cite news |url=https://www.smh.com.au/news/world/hamas-tried-to-hijack-ambulances-during-war/2009/01/25/1232818246374.html |title=Hamas tried to hijack ambulances during Gaza war |date=2009-01-29 |newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald}}</ref><ref name="Weighing Crimes and Ethics in the Fog of Urban Warfare">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/17/world/middleeast/17israel.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all |title=Weighing Crimes and Ethics in the Fog of Urban Warfare |date=2009-01-16 |newspaper=The New York Times |first=Steven |last=Erlanger |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref>
The IDF claimed that Hamas operated a command and control center inside [[Al-Shifa Hospital|Shifa Hospital]] in Gaza City throughout the War, and that Hamas field commanders exploited the daily cessation in fighting that the IDF established for humanitarian purposes to receive instructions from senior Hamas officials. Addressing the Israeli cabinet, an intelligence official claimed that senior members of Hamas sought refuge in the sub-level floors believing that Israel would not target them for fear that such a strike would invariably lead to heavy collateral damage to the hospital patients in the upper floors.<ref name="shifa">{{cite news |author=Amos Harel |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/sources-hamas-leaders-hiding-in-basement-of-israel-built-hospital-in-gaza-1.267940 |title=Hamas leaders hiding in basement of Israel-built hospital in Gaza |newspaper=Haaretz |date=12 January 2009 |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref>
Next to the hospital, Militants set up posts that were used for the firing of mortars. Underneath a mosque that was located alongside the hospital was discovered a tunnel leading to the maternity ward, which was used by Hamas operatives to move undetected. After an Israeli airstrike on the central prison, which resulted in prisoners being released into the streets, several of the 115 prisoners accused of collaboration with Israel who had not yet been tried were executed by Hamas militants wearing civilian clothes in the Shifa hospital compound.<ref>{{cite news |title=No Early End Seen to 'All-Out War' on Hamas in Gaza |author=Ethan Bronner and Taghreed El-Khodary |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/30/world/middleeast/30mideast.html?_r=1 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=30 December 2008 |access-date=9 April 2012}}</ref><ref name="10 Gazan hospitals">{{cite news |last=Katz |first=Yaakov |title=10 Gazan hospitals used by Hamas in Cast Lead |url=http://www.jpost.com/MiddleEast/Article.aspx?id=170992 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=2010-03-15 |access-date=9 April 2012}}</ref>
The [[Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center]], an Israel-based group with close ties to the Israeli military establishment,<ref name=nytimes_study/> reported that Hamas made extensive use of the Al-Fahoura Medical Centre and that they established a military camp and training base next to it. The ITIC released aerial pictures showing tunnels dug around the building and the medical centre and that the area surrounding the hospital was heavily mined. Rockets were launched in close proximity of the centre. The ITIC report stated that Hamas used 10 Gazan hospitals for launching rockets at Israeli towns and for attacking IDF troops.<ref name="10 Gazan hospitals" />
Hamas also set up a command centre within a children's hospital located in the Nasser neighbourhood of Gaza City, which was used by top Hamas leadership on the night of 27 December. Senior Hamas commanders also set up a command center in a Red Crescent Society clinic in Khan Yunis.<ref name=JpostHaniyehHid /><ref name="10 Gazan hospitals" />
An IDF probe, released on 22 April 2009, stated that a UN vehicle was attacked by Israeli forces because a Palestinian anti-tank squad was being unloaded from the vehicle.<ref name=JpostHaniyehHid />
Amnesty International rejected the charges by Israel that Hamas had systematically used medical facilities, vehicles and uniforms as a cover, stating that no evidence had been provided proving such actions.<ref name=Jpost0202>{{Cite news |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1246443696703&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |title=Amnesty accuses Israel of reckless use of weapons |date=2009-02-02 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001163639/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1246443696703&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref> Further, [[Magen David Adom]]'s submission to the UN Mission investigating the war stated "there was no use of PRCS ambulances for the transport of weapons or ammunition ... [and] there was no misuse of the emblem by PRCS."<ref name=UNFFMGCReportp144>{{Cite news |url=http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/09/15/UNFFMGCReport.pdf |title=Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict, 2009, p. 144. |access-date=2010-03-24 |work=The Guardian |location=London}}</ref>
Following its investigations the Goldstone report concluded that it "did not find any evidence to support the allegations that hospital facilities were used by the Gaza authorities or by Palestinian armed groups to shield military activities and that ambulances were used to transport combatants or for other military purposes".<ref name=UNFFMGCReport_pdf/>
==Effects==
{{Main|Effects of the Gaza War}}
[[File:War in Gaza 009 - Flickr - Al Jazeera English.jpg|thumb|Destroyed buildings in [[Gaza City]], January 2009]]
Along with a high casualty rate, there were multiple economic, industrial and medical effects of the Gaza War. The [[United Nations Development Programme]] warned that there will be long-term consequences of the attacks on Gaza because the livelihoods and assets of tens of thousands of Gaza civilians have been affected.<ref>{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090205002518/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_pres_release_ny_2009_english.pdf |archive-date=5 February 2009 |access-date=21 January 2009 |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_pres_release_ny_2009_english.pdf |title=Press release }}</ref>
Early estimates by independent contractors in Gaza say that Gaza lost nearly $2 billion in assets, including 4,000 homes destroyed.<ref name="bbcjan192009-earthquate">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7838618.stm "Gaza 'looks like earthquake zone'"], BBC News, 19 January 2009.</ref> The IDF destroyed 600–700 factories, small industries, workshops and business enterprises throughout the Gaza Strip,<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1067282.html |author=Amira Hass |title=Industrial wastelands |date=26 February 2009 |newspaper=Haaretz |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090304000654/http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1067282.html |archive-date=4 March 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> 24 mosques, 31 security compounds, and 10 water or sewage lines.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/un-chief-hamas-rocket-attacks-are-appalling-and-unacceptable-1.268515 |title=UN Chief: Hamas rocket attacks are 'appalling and unacceptable' |newspaper=Haaretz |agency=Associated Press |date=20 January 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> The [[World Health Organization]] said that 34 health facilities (8 hospitals and 26 primary health care clinics) were damaged over the course of the offensive and the [[UNOCHA]] said that over 50 United Nations facilities sustained damage, of which 28 reported damage in the first three days of the operation.<ref name="UNOCHAJan22">{{cite web |title=Protection of Civilians Weekly Report |date=16–20 January 2009 |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_protection_of_civilians_weekly_2009_01_20_english.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100706072645/http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_protection_of_civilians_weekly_2009_01_20_english.pdf |archive-date=6 July 2010 }}</ref> On 22 January 2010, Israel paid $10.5&nbsp;million in compensation to the [[United Nations]] for damage to UN property incurred during the Israeli offensive.<ref>[https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=33559&Cr=gaza&Cr1 "Israel compensates UN for {{sic|damage|s|nolink=y}} during last year's Gaza offensive"]. United Nations. Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref>
A satellite-based damage assessment of the Gaza Strip by the United Nations revealed 2,692 destroyed and severely damaged buildings, 220 [[impact craters]] on roads and bridges with an estimated length of 167&nbsp;km (104&nbsp;mi) of [[paved road|paved]] and unpaved roads damaged, 714 impact craters on open ground or cultivated land with an estimated land area of 2,100 hectares (21&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>), 187 [[greenhouses]] completely destroyed or severely damaged with an estimated area of 28 hectares (0.28&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>), and 2,232 hectares (22.32&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>) of demolished zones targeted by IDF [[bulldozers]], tanks and [[white phosphorus|phosphorus]] shelling.<ref name="unosat_2_19">{{Cite news |title=Satellite-based Gaza Damage Assessment Overview |url=http://unosat.web.cern.ch/unosat/freeproducts/Gaza/Crisis2008/UNOSAT_GazaStrip_Damage_Review_19Feb09_v3_Lowres.pdf |date=2009-03-10 |access-date=2009-04-07 |publisher=[[United Nations Institute for Training and Research]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110706223343/http://unosat.web.cern.ch/unosat/freeproducts/Gaza/Crisis2008/UNOSAT_GazaStrip_Damage_Review_19Feb09_v3_Lowres.pdf |archive-date=6 July 2011 }}</ref>
===Health problems in Gaza===
Following the war, Gaza has witnessed increasing epidemics of health problems.
At the Al Shifa hospital a constant increase in the percentage of children born with birth defects of about 60% was witnessed when the period of July to September 2008 was compared to the same period in 2009.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.paltelegraph.com/palestine/gaza-strip/3931 |title=Birth defects in Gaza increase due to war effects |publisher=The Palestine Telegraph |date=2010-02-04 |access-date=2010-05-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100205123223/http://www.paltelegraph.com/palestine/gaza-strip/3931 |archive-date=5 February 2010}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=215317 |title=New birth defects seen in Gaza due to Israeli weapons |newspaper=Tehran Times |date=2010-03-06 |access-date=2010-05-08}}</ref> Dr. Mohammed Abu Shaban, director of the Blood Tumors Department in Al-Rantisy Hospital in Gaza has witnessed an increase in the number of cases of blood cancer. In March 2010 the department had seen 55 cases so far for that year, compared to the 20 to 25 cases normally seen in an entire year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.paltelegraph.com/diaries/featured-articles/4847-cancer-increases-by-considerable-percentage-gaza-strip |title=Cancer increases by considerable percentage in Gaza Strip |publisher=The Palestine Telegraph |date=2010-03-16 |access-date=2010-05-08}} {{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
During the war, Norwegian medics said that they had found traces of depleted uranium, a radioactive and genotoxic material used in some types of munition, in some Gaza residents who were wounded.<ref>{{Cite journal |issn=1997-3322 |volume=20 |issue=1 |pages=1–3 |last=Thomsen |first=Jørgen L |author2=Martin Worm-Leonhard |title=The detection of phosphorus in the tissue of bomb victims in Gaza |journal=Torture: Quarterly Journal on Rehabilitation of Torture Victims and Prevention of Torture |year=2010 |pmid=20228449}}</ref> Lawyers who brought back soil samples from Gaza said that areas where these samples were taken contained up to 75 tons of depleted uranium.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-06/11/content_11527880.htm |title=Lawyers: Israel uses uranium in Gaza offensive |publisher=Xinhua |date=2009-06-11 |access-date=2010-05-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090802115802/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-06/11/content_11527880.htm |archive-date=2 August 2009 }}</ref> The Israeli government denied it used Depleted Uranium, and the United Nations opened an investigation.<ref>{{cite news |last=Melman |first=Yossi |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/un-to-probe-claim-israel-used-depleted-uranium-bombs-in-gaza-1.268599 |title=UN to probe claim Israel used depleted uranium bombs in Gaza |newspaper=Haaretz |date=22 January 2009 |access-date=2010-05-08}}</ref> Israel had also initially denied the use of white phosphorus during the war, but later acknowledged that indeed it had used white phosphorus to cover troop movements.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2009/07/200973020830886898.html |title=Israel admits white phosphorus use |publisher=Al Jazeera |date=2009-07-31 |access-date=2010-05-08}}</ref>
The policy of the Government of Israel is to condition the access of Palestinians who live in the Palestinian territories to healthcare in Israel upon financial coverage from the [[Palestinian National Authority|Palestinian Authority]]. In January 2009, following the war, the Palestinian Authority cancelled financial coverage for all medical care for Palestinians in Israeli hospitals, including coverage for chronically ill Palestinian patients, and those in need of complex care that is not available in other tertiary medical centers in the region. This decision was protested by human rights organizations.<ref>[https://archive.today/20120630163626/http://reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900sid/CJAL-7PYM36?OpenDocument "Physicians for Human Rights-Israel and human rights organizations in a joint position paper on the decision to stop covering Palestinian's medical care in Israel"]. ReliefWeb. (2009-03-09). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref>
===Gaza humanitarian crisis===
{{See also|2008-2009 Gaza Strip aid}}
[[File:UNOSAT GazaStrip Damage Review 19Feb09 v3 Lowres.png|thumb|A satellite-based damage assessment of the Gaza Strip by the United Nations ([[UNOSAT]], February 2009)]]
The United Nations [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] reported that the Gaza humanitarian crisis is significant and should not be understated. It also states that the situation is a "[[human dignity]] crisis" in the Gaza strip, entailing "a massive destruction of livelihoods and a significant deterioration of [[infrastructure]] and basic services". Fear and panic are widespread; 80% of the population could not support themselves and were dependent on humanitarian assistance.<ref name="ocha_report_1_2" /> The [[International Committee of the Red Cross|International Red Cross]] said the situation was "intolerable" and a "full blown humanitarian crisis".<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7813671.stm |title=Gaza clashes spark 'major crisis' |publisher=BCC News |date=2009-01-06 |access-date=2010-04-02}}</ref> The importation of necessary food and supplies continues to be blocked even after the respective ceasefires.<ref>{{cite news |title=At a Border Crossing, Drivers and Truckloads of Aid for Gaza Go Nowhere |author=Michael Slackman |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/28/world/middleeast/28egypt.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=28 January 2009 |access-date=18 June 2012}}</ref> According to the World Food Programme, the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization and Palestinian officials, between 35% and 60% of the agriculture industry was wrecked. With extensive damage occurring to water sources, greenhouses, and farmland. It is estimated that 60% of the agricultural land in the north of the Strip may no longer be arable.<ref>{{Cite news |author=Peter Beaumont |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/feb/01/gaza-food-crisis |title=Gaza desperately short of food after Israel destroys farmland |newspaper=The Guardian |access-date=2010-03-24 |location=London |date=2009-02-01}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/gaza-counts-the-cost-ndash-and-assigns-blame-1522547.html |author=Donald Macintyre |title=Gaza counts the cost – and assigns blame |newspaper=The Independent on Sunday |date=1 February 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24 |location=London}}</ref> More than 50,800 Gazans were left homeless.<ref name="bbcjan192009-earthquate" /> Extensive destruction was caused to commercial enterprises and to public infrastructure. According to Palestinian industrialists, 219 factories were destroyed or severely damaged during the Israeli military operation. They accounted as part of the 3% of industrial capacity that was operating after the Israeli blockade was imposed, which was mostly destroyed during the operation.<ref name="ocha_report_1_29" />
On 3 January before the IDF ground operation, Israel's foreign minister [[Tzipi Livni]] said that Israel had taken care to protect the civilian population of Gaza, and that it had kept the humanitarian situation "completely as it should be", maintaining Israel's earlier stance.<ref name="livni_no_crisis_in_gaza">{{Cite news |title=Livni: No crisis in Gaza Strip |url=http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2009/01/20091115532645312.html |date=2009-01-01 |publisher=[[Aljazeera English]] |access-date=2009-01-03}}</ref> The secretary-general of the [[Arab League]], [[Amr Moussa]], criticized Livni's statement and further criticized the [[United Nations Security Council|Security Council]] for not responding faster to the crisis.<ref name = haaretz_humanitarian>{{cite news |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/arab-league-slams-livni-remark-there-s-no-humanitarian-crisis-in-gaza-1.267362 |title=Arab League slams Livni remark 'there's no humanitarian crisis in Gaza' |newspaper=Haaretz |agency=Reuters |date=3 January 2009 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> On subsequent reports, the UN stated that "only an immediate cease-fire will be able to address the large-scale humanitarian and protection crisis that faces the people of Gaza."<ref name="ocha_report_1_11">{{Cite news |title=Field Update On Gaza From The Humanitarian Coordinator |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_situation_report_2009_01_11_english.pdf |date=2009-01-11 |publisher=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |access-date=2009-01-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090114195402/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_situation_report_2009_01_11_english.pdf |archive-date=14 January 2009 }}</ref>
The [[Emergency Relief Coordinator]] of the United Nations has stated that after the end of the Israeli operation, at best, only 120 truckloads get into Gaza, instead of the normal daily requirement, including commercial traffic, of 500 trucks at minimum. It is also reported in his statement and other UN [[OCHA|humanitarian office]] reports that essential items such as construction materials, water pipes, electrical wires, and transformers continue to be effectively banned, or only allowed infrequently.<ref name="ocha_report_1_29">{{Cite news |title=Field Update on Gaza From The Humanitarian Coordinator – 27–29 January 2009, 1700 hours |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_29_english.pdf |date=2009-01-29 |access-date=2009-02-11 |agency=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219051705/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_29_english.pdf |archive-date=19 February 2009 }}</ref><ref name="sir_john_holmes_statement">{{Cite news |title=Briefing to the Security Council on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian Question |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_crisis_security_briefing_2009_01_26.pdf |publisher=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |date=2009-01-27 |access-date=2009-02-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219051632/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_crisis_security_briefing_2009_01_26.pdf |archive-date=19 February 2009 }}</ref><ref name="ocha_report_1_19">{{Cite news |title=Field Update On Gaza From The Humantirian Coordinator – 19 January 2009, 1700 hours |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_19_english.pdf |date=2009-01-19 |agency=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |access-date=2009-01-22 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225151628/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_19_english.pdf |archive-date=25 February 2009 }}</ref><ref name="ocha_report_2_5" /> He also stated that commercial goods must be allowed in and out, since Gaza Palestinians "do not want or deserve to be dependent on humanitarian aid" and that the "limited trickle" of items into Gaza continue the effective collective punishment of the civilian population and force the counter-productive reliance on tunnels for daily essentials.<ref name="sir_john_holmes_statement" /><ref name="unric_holmes">{{Cite news |title='Every Gazan has a tale of profound grief to tell'..., Security Council told |url=http://january.unricmagazine.org/front-page-news/161-every-gazan-has-a-tale-of-profound-grief-to-tell-yet-people-also-determined-to-overcome-pain-rebuild-lives-security-council-told.html |agency=[[United Nations Regional Information Centre]] Magazine |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090223152515/http://january.unricmagazine.org/front-page-news/161-every-gazan-has-a-tale-of-profound-grief-to-tell-yet-people-also-determined-to-overcome-pain-rebuild-lives-security-council-told.html |archive-date=23 February 2009 }}</ref>
[[File:Tent camp gaza strip april 2009.jpg|thumb|left|Tent camp, Gaza Strip, April 2009]]
As a result of the conflict, the [[European Union]], the [[Organisation of Islamic Cooperation|Organisation of the Islamic Conference]] and over 50 nations donated humanitarian aid to Gaza, including the United States, which donated over $20&nbsp;million.<ref>Elise Labott, [http://edition.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/meast/01/29/gaza.us.aid/ U.S. to give $20 million more in humanitarian aid to Gaza]. CNN. 26-01-2009</ref> On 7&nbsp;January a UN Relief Works Agency spokesman acknowledged that he was "aware of instances where deliveries of humanitarian aid into Gaza" were diverted by the Hamas government, though never from his agency.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2009/01/07/DI2009010701185.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120809051715/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/discussion/2009/01/07/DI2009010701185.html |title=Middle East: Israel Halts Operations To Allow Aid Shipments |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=7 January 2009 |archive-date=9 August 2012 |first=Johan |last=Eriksson |access-date=2010-04-02 }}</ref> Additionally, on 3&nbsp;February, blankets and food parcels were confiscated by Hamas police personnel from an [[UNRWA]] distribution center, and on 4&nbsp;February, the UN [[Emergency Relief Coordinator]] demanded that the aid be returned immediately.<ref name="ocha_report_2_5">{{Cite news |title=Field Update on Gaza From the Humanitarian Coordinator |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_02_05_english.pdf |date=2009-02-05 |access-date=2009-02-13 |agency=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225151528/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_02_05_english.pdf |archive-date=25 February 2009 }}</ref> The Hamas government issued a statement stating that the incident was a misunderstanding between the drivers of the trucks and has been resolved through direct contact with the UNRWA.<ref>{{Cite news |title=UNRWA suspends activities in Gazans after Hamas seized aid |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-02/07/content_10776872.htm |agency=[[Xinhua News]] |date=2009-02-06 |access-date=2009-02-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090211141508/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-02/07/content_10776872.htm |archive-date=11 February 2009 }}</ref> On 9&nbsp;February, UNRWA lifted the suspension on the movement of its humanitarian supplies into Gaza, after the Hamas authorities returned all the aid supplies confiscated.<ref name="ocha_report_2_9">{{Cite news |title=Field Update on Gaza From the Humanitarian Coordinator, 6–9 February 2009, 1700 hours |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_02_09_english-20090210-104024.pdf |date=2009-02-09 |access-date=2009-02-13 |agency=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090225151547/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_02_09_english-20090210-104024.pdf |archive-date=25 February 2009 }}</ref> The UN [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] has described the Israeli procedures for humanitarian organizations entrance to Gaza as inconsistent and unpredictable ones that impedes the ability of organizations to effectively plan their humanitarian response and obstructs efforts to address the humanitarian crisis brought by the 18 months blockade and Israel's military operation.<ref name="ocha_report_2_2">{{Cite news |title=Field Update On Gaza From The Humanitarian Coordinator, 30 January – 2 February 2009, 1700 hours |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_02_02_english.pdf |date=2009-02-02 |access-date=2009-02-11 |agency=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219051713/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_02_02_english.pdf |archive-date=19 February 2009 }}</ref> The UN also reported that international organizations faced "unprecedented denial" of access to Gaza by Israel since 5&nbsp;November and that humanitarian access remained unreliable and needed to be granted on an unrestricted daily basis.{{Clarify|date=March 2013}}<ref name="ocha_report_1_26">{{Cite news |title=Field Update On Gaza From The Humanitarian Coordinator – 24–26 January 2009, 1700 hours |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_26_english.pdf |date=2009-01-26 |access-date=2009-01-28 |agency=[[UN]] [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219051648/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_gaza_humanitarian_situation_report_2009_01_26_english.pdf |archive-date=19 February 2009 }}</ref>
[[File:Destruction In Gaza.jpg|thumb|Destroyed buildings in Gaza]]
In a damage assessment by the [[World Health Organization]], 48% of the 122 health facilities assessed were found to be damaged or destroyed, 15 of Gaza's 27 hospitals and 41 [[primary health care]] centers suffered damage, and 29 ambulances were partially damaged or destroyed.<ref name="who_report_2_4">{{Cite news |title=Health Situation in the Gaza Strip |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_who_gaza_situation_report_2009_02_04_english.pdf |date=2009-02-04 |access-date=2009-02-13 |agency=[[World Health Organization]] |publisher=UN [[Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090219051801/http://www.ochaopt.org/gazacrisis/admin/output/files/ocha_opt_who_gaza_situation_report_2009_02_04_english.pdf |archive-date=19 February 2009 }}</ref> Injured patients needing referral outside Gaza for specialized care were evacuated exclusively through the Egyptian [[Rafah Border Crossing|Rafah border crossing]]. In the early stages of the conflict, Hamas sealed the border, and prevented wounded Palestinians from seeking medical attention in Egypt.<ref name="ReutersAfrica">{{Cite news |url=http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnJOE4BR01X.html |title=Hamas denying Gaza wounded treatment in Egypt |date=28 December 2008 |publisher=Reuters Africa |access-date=28 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081230120749/http://africa.reuters.com/top/news/usnJOE4BR01X.html |archive-date=30 December 2008 }}</ref> On 30 December, the organization allowed a trickle of medical evacuations from Gaza, but restricted their number.<ref name="PalestinianWoundedFinally">{{cite news |title=Palestinian wounded finally pass through Egypt crossing |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ipy-I4l8HBUyagJsP_RJwLFRWkbQ |agency=Associated French Press |date=30 December 2008 |archive-date=9 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090209045230/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5ipy-I4l8HBUyagJsP_RJwLFRWkbQ }}</ref> Gaza Ministry of Health reported that between 29 December and 22 January 608 injured were evacuated through Rafah. The Israeli Erez crossing was closed much of the period and only 30 patients were able to exit during the crisis.<ref name="ocha_report_2_2" /><ref name="who_report_2_4" /> An initial survey conducted by the [[United Nations Development Programme]] (UNDP) estimates that 14,000 homes, 68 government buildings, and 31 non-governmental organization offices (NGOs) were either totally or partially damaged, creating about 600,000 tonnes of concrete rubble needing to be removed.<ref name="ocha_report_2_5" /> Since 2007, Israel has not permitted the entry of construction material into Gaza, adversely affecting UN projects, in particular [[UNRWA]] and UNDP, who suspended more than $100&nbsp;million in construction projects due to lack of materials.<ref name="ocha_report_1_19" />
The [[Ministry of Health (Israel)|Israeli Health Ministry]] and [[Magen David Adom]] established an emergency clinic for wounded Gazans at the Erez crossing on 17 June. The clinic received only {{Quantify|date=March 2013}}patients, none of them with war-related injuries, and it was suspected that Hamas had instructed civilians not to seek treatment there. The clinic closed after ten days.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3662288,00.html |title=Israel to close clinic at Erez crossing |newspaper=Ynetnews |date=1995-06-20 |access-date=2012-10-07|last1=Or |first1=Meital Yasur-Beit }}</ref> Subsequently, the [[Jordanian Army]] established a [[field hospital]] in the Gaza Strip, which is still operating.{{When|date=March 2013}} The hospital's equipment, staff, and military guards are transferred from Jordan through Israel via the [[Allenby Bridge]], and outgoing personnel return the same way.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://en.ammonnews.net/article.aspx?articleNO=10949 |title=Jordanian military field hospital arrives in Gaza |publisher=En.ammonnews.net |date=2010-11-24 |access-date=2014-08-17}}</ref><ref>[http://www.idfblog.com/2011/06/13/israeli-convoy-delivers-medical-supplies-to-gaza/ "Israeli Convoy Delivers Medical Supplies to Gaza"] IDF Blog: The Official Blog of the Israel Defense Forces, 13 June 2011</ref>
One year after the ceasefire approximately 20,000 people remained displaced.<ref name="unhm200912">{{cite web |url=http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_the_humanitarian_monitor_2010_01_18_english.pdf |title=THE HUMANITARIAN MONITOR |date=December 2009 |publisher=United Nations – Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs – occupied Palestinian territory |access-date=7 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100216063443/http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/ocha_opt_the_humanitarian_monitor_2010_01_18_english.pdf |archive-date=16 February 2010 }}</ref>
===Effects on Israel===
[[File:Rocketpopmap.jpeg|thumb|According to [[Human Rights Watch|HRW]], during the Gaza War, rocket attacks placed up to 800,000 people within range of attack.<ref name="Hamas: Investigate Attacks on Israeli Civilians"/>]]
During the conflict, life in much of southern Israel was largely paralyzed by more than 30 Hamas rocket and mortar strikes.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/israeli-forces-bisect-gaza-and-surround-biggest-city-1224897.html |title=Israeli forces bisect Gaza and surround biggest city |newspaper=The Independent |date=2009-01-04 |access-date=2010-03-24 |location=London}}</ref> The Israeli [[Home Front Command]] issued detailed emergency instructions to Israeli citizens for preparing for and dealing with rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip. The instructions included orders to stay within a certain distance of [[bomb shelter]]s based on proximity to the source of the rockets.<ref>[http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3645774,00.html Home Front Command issues emergency instructions], Ynetnews 31-12-2008 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220328092316/http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-3645774,00.html |date=28 March 2022 }}<!--http://www.ynetnews.com/english/articles/0,7340,L-3645774,00.html also dead--></ref> Hamas' Grad rockets' increased range of 40&nbsp;km put more than 700,000 Israelis within strike range,<ref>{{Cite news |last=Butcher |first=Tim |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4045162/More-than-700000-Israelis-now-in-range-of-Hamas-missiles.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4045162/More-than-700000-Israelis-now-in-range-of-Hamas-missiles.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=More than 700,000 Israelis now in range of Hamas missiles |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |date=2008-12-31 |access-date=2010-03-24 |location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref> prompting 40% of the residents of the southern city of [[Ashkelon]] to flee the city, despite official calls to stay.<ref name="irinnews.org">[http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=82338 "Ashkelon Empties, Trauma teams Struggle"], IRIN News (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs),13-01-2009</ref> Throughout the war, Palestinian rocket attacks into Israel damaged or destroyed more than 1,500 homes and buildings and 327 vehicles.<ref>{{cite news |author=Pinhas Wolf |date=21 January 2009 |url=http://finance.walla.co.il/item/1421716 |title=נזקי המלחמה: 1,900 תביעות על פגיעה ישירה |language=he |trans-title=War damage: 1,900 claims for a direct hit |publisher=Walla! |access-date=2011-06-18}}</ref> Numerous agricultural fields near Gaza also sustained damage. Twenty-eight Israeli families lost their homes to rocket attacks, and had to temporarily live in hotels.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3654143,00.html "Rocket {{sic|damage|s|nolink=y}} lead to 1,120 property tax suits"]. Ynetnews.com (1995-06-20). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref> Among the buildings hit were nine educational facilities and three synagogues.<ref name="golstonereport.com">[http://www.thegoldstonereport.com/rockets.html "Israel's Actions in Gaza"]. Thegoldstonereport.com. Retrieved on 2011-06-18. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110322154449/http://www.thegoldstonereport.com/rockets.html |date=22 March 2011 }}</ref>
Schools and universities in southern Israel began to close due to rocket threats on 27 December.<ref>Aron Heller, [https://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090111/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_back_to_school "School resumes in Israel despite rocket threat"], Associated Press, 11-01-2009 {{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> Studies officially resumed on 11 January. Only schools with fortified classrooms and bomb shelters were allowed to bring students in, and IDF Home Front Command representatives were stationed in the schools;<ref name="irinnews.org"/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231424908523&pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull |title=Some 2,700 Beersheba students to attend classes in bomb shelters |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=10 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120224113742/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231424908523&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=24 February 2012 }}</ref> attendance was low.<ref>[http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=82338 "Ashkelon Empties, Trauma teams Struggle"], IRIN News (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs13-01-2009</ref><ref name=back>Dina Kraft (13 January 2009). [http://jta.org/news/article/2009/01/13/1002206/israeli-schools-reopen-as-rocket-fire-declines "Some Israelis go back to school as rocket fire declines"]. [[Jewish Telegraphic Agency]]. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090122154137/http://jta.org/news/article/2009/01/13/1002206/israeli-schools-reopen-as-rocket-fire-declines |date=22 January 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Abe Selig |url=http://www.jpost.com/Home/Article.aspx?id=128844 |title=Back to school for students in South |work=The Jerusalem Post |date=12 January 2009 |access-date=6 June 2012}}</ref> Palestinian rocket attacks that hit educational facilities caused no casualties.<ref name="golstonereport.com"/><ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3648122,00.html "IDF: Rocket that hit Beersheba school made in China"]. Yael Barnovsky. [[Ynetnews]]. 31 December 2008.</ref><ref name="school">{{cite news |author=Abe Selig |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1230456538695 |title=School closure saves lives of pupils |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=31 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001163124/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1230456538695 |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3652872,00.html |title=4 troops hurt in mortar attack; Grad hits Ashkelon school |author=Shmulik Hadad |publisher=[[Ynetnews]] |date=8 January 2009}}</ref>
The largest hospital on Israel's southern coast, Ashkelon's [[Barzilai Medical Center]], moved its critical treatment facilities into an underground shelter after a rocket struck beside its [[helipad|helicopter pad]] on 28 December.<ref name="fear">[https://web.archive.org/web/20090106123754/http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28409448/ "Fear sends Israeli hospital underground"]. [[MSNBC]]. 28 December 2008.</ref>
Most business in Southern Israel stopped upon orders of the Home Front Command, with retailers losing an estimated $7&nbsp;million in the first week. Numerous small businesses suffered in decreased sales, and were unable to pay employee salaries due to low revenues.<ref name="golstonereport.com"/> Major industries remained open, but had high absence rates.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3649224,00.hmtl|title=Ynetnews}}</ref> The Manufacturers Association of Israel estimated the direct cost to business and industry to be 88&nbsp;million [[Israeli new shekel|NIS]], and indirect financial losses at several tens of millions of shekels.<ref name="globes">[http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000417729 "Manufacturers claim Cast Lead cost industry nearly NIS 90m"]. Globes (2009-01-18). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref>
The Israel Tax Authority received 1,728 compensation claims for damage related to the conflict, mostly from [[Ashkelon]] and [[Ashdod]].<ref name="globes"/>
According to Israeli economist Ron Eichel, the war effort cost the Israeli military about 5&nbsp;billion NIS in military expenditure, or 250&nbsp;million NIS per day.<ref>[http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000417933 "Operation Cast Lead direct cost estimated at NIS 5b"]. Globes (2009-01-19). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref> An anonymous political source told [[Ynetnews]] that the aerial assaults were costing $27&nbsp;million to $39&nbsp;million a day in munitions and fuel, totaling the first six days of the operation at nearly $265&nbsp;million for air-strikes alone. Both the IDF and Treasury refused to disclose the exact amount, and the Treasury adamantly denied these figures.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3649224,00.html "Price tags of war"] Ynetnews. (1995-06-20). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref>
==International law==
<!-- This section should be maintained as an up to date summary of the main 'International law and the Gaza War' article. It should match or closely follow the lead of that article. -->
{{Main|International law and the Gaza War}}
{{See also|United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict}}
Accusations of violations regarding [[international humanitarian law]], which governs the actions by belligerents during an armed conflict, have been directed at both Israel and Hamas for their actions during the Gaza War. The accusations covered violating laws governing [[distinction (law)|distinction]] and [[proportionality (international humanitarian law)|proportionality]] by Israel, the indiscriminate firing of rockets at civilian locations and [[2009 Hamas political violence in Gaza|extrajudicial violence]] within the Gaza Strip by Hamas.<ref name="AI_briefing" /><ref name="Under Cover of War">{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/node/82359/section/5 |title=Under Cover of War |date=20 April 2009 |publisher=Human Rights Watch}}</ref> As of September 2009, some 360 complaints had been filed by individuals and [[NGO]]s at the prosecutor's office in [[the Hague]] calling for investigations into alleged crimes committed by Israel during the Gaza War.<ref name=JTA1>{{cite news |title=Palestinian teen accuses Israel in The Hague |date=1 September 2009 |url=http://jta.org/news/article/2009/09/01/1007573/palestinian-girl-accuses-israel-in-the-hague |access-date=2009-09-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090905000358/http://jta.org/news/article/2009/09/01/1007573/palestinian-girl-accuses-israel-in-the-hague |archive-date=5 September 2009}}</ref>
On 15 September 2009, a 574-page [[United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict|report by UN inquiry team]] was released, officially titled "Human Rights in Palestine and Other Occupied Arab Territories: Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict". It concluded that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Palestinian armed groups committed [[war crimes]] and possibly [[crimes against humanity]].<ref>[http://image.guardian.co.uk/sys-files/Guardian/documents/2009/09/15/UNFFMGCReport.pdf "Report of the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict"], UN Fact Finding Mission, 15 September 2009</ref> On 16 October 2009, the UN [[Human Rights Council]] endorsed the report.<ref name=APFOct16>{{Cite news |title=UN rights council endorses damning Gaza report |publisher=APF |access-date=2009-10-16 |date=2009-10-16 |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gsdjgCX2JtwyHVtOEKfuVieGZaLw |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091022011608/https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gsdjgCX2JtwyHVtOEKfuVieGZaLw |archive-date=22 October 2009}}</ref> Israel's defense minister said that the report was distorted, falsified and not balanced.<ref name="BBC 2010-01-29"/>
Human rights organizations have urged both Israel and Hamas to implement an independent investigation into the alleged violations of international law as stipulated by the Goldstone report.<ref name="Letter to Prime Minister Haniya">{{cite web |url=https://www.hrw.org/en/node/86177 |title=Letter to Prime Minister Haniya |publisher=Human Rights Watch |date=2009-10-20 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Laub |first=Karen |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=168015 |title=Rights group faults Israel's Cast Lead crimes probe |agency=Associated Press |date=7 February 2010 |access-date=6 June 2012}}<!--Karen Laub doesn't appear 6 June 2012; available earlier or elsewhere?--></ref><ref>[http://www.btselem.org/english/press_releases/20100126.asp "Human rights community to Israeli Prime Minister: Time is running out. Establish independent inquiry into Operation Cast Lead"] B'tselem. 26 January 2010</ref>
On 1 April 2011, Goldstone wrote an op-ed that appeared in ''[[The Washington Post]]'' in which he stated that he no longer believes the report's finding that Israel targeted Palestinian civilians as a matter of policy, the most serious accusation the report made against Israel.<ref>Goldstone, Richard. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/reconsidering-the-goldstone-report-on-israel-and-war-crimes/2011/04/01/AFg111JC_story.html Reconsidering the Goldstone Report on Israel and war crimes] ''The Washington Post''. 1 April 2011</ref> The three other signatories to the UNHRC report, [[Hina Jilani]], [[Christine Chinkin]] and [[Desmond Travers]], co-authored an op-ed that appeared in ''[[The Guardian]]'' in which they replied that there was no evidence that refutes any of the report's findings.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Pilkington|first1=Ed|last2=Urquhart|first2=Conal|url=https://www.smh.com.au/world/gaza-report-authors-rebuke-goldstone-20110415-1dhxx.html|title=Gaza report authors rebuke Goldstone|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=16 April 2011|access-date=1 March 2023}}</ref>
In April 2012, the [[International Criminal Court]] (ICC) rejected the Palestinian Authority's (PA) request that Israel be investigated for claimed war crimes in Gaza in 2009, holding that since the PA is recognized by the UN General Assembly as an [[United Nations General Assembly observers|"observer"]] rather than a "state", the ICC lacked jurisdiction to hear its request.<ref>{{Cite news |title=ICC rebuffs Palestinians' Gaza war crimes case against Israel |publisher=Los Angeles Times blogs |access-date=2012-05-04 |date=2012-03-04 |url=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/world_now/2012/04/icc-rebuffs-palestinians-war-crimes-case-against-israel.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=ICC Ruling in Favor of Israel May Force Palestinian Authority to Change Course |url=http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/04/04/icc-ruling-in-favor-of-israel-may-force-palestinian-authority-to-change-course/ |date=4 April 2012 |newspaper=Algemeiner Journal |access-date=5 April 2012}}</ref> The decision was heavily criticized by human rights groups.<ref>{{cite news |title=ICC rejects bid for Gaza war crimes tribunal |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2012/04/20124318028457229.html |publisher=Al Jazeera |access-date=5 April 2012}}</ref>
===Right to resist and the right to self-defence===
Legal professor Jerome Slater writes, in the context of Operation Cast Lead, that Palestinians in principle have the right to resist Israeli occupation (thought this right does not allow for attacks on civilians).<ref name=slater/> And while Israel has the right of self-defense, it forfeited this right when it occupied and repressed Palestinians.<ref name=slater>{{cite journal |last1=Slater |first1=Jerome |title=Just War Moral Philosophy and the 2008–09 Israeli Campaign in Gaza |journal=International Security |date=October 2012 |volume=37 |issue=2 |page=56-57 |doi=10.1162/ISEC_a_00098}}</ref> [[Just war theory]] allows war only if every effort to a political solution has failed. Slater argues that in the lead up to the war, Israel frequently refused to negotiate ceasefires with Hamas, or it violated the very ceasefire it had agreed to.<ref name=slater/>
==Media==
{{Main|Media and the Gaza War}}
[[File:Photojournalists in 2008-2009 Israel-Gaza conflict.jpg|thumb|[[Photojournalism|Photojournalists]] during the conflict]]
International news networks named the conflict "War in Gaza" and focused on the assault. Israeli media called it the "War in the South" ({{langx|he|מלחמה בדרום}} ''Milẖama BaDarom'') and dispatched reporters to Israeli towns hit by rockets.<ref name="AFP 2009-01-14">{{Cite news |url=https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jDNXSKy5hAvIp-4y37J-q3q_Trzw |title=Israel media on defensive over Gaza war coverage |date=14 January 2009 |publisher=[[Agence France-Presse]] |access-date=23 February 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140228173443/https://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jDNXSKy5hAvIp-4y37J-q3q_Trzw |archive-date=28 February 2014}}</ref> Al Jazeera suggested that it was a war against Palestinian civilians with the title "War on Gaza".<ref name="Bill Meyer 2008-01-13">{{Cite news |url=http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2009Jan13/0,4670,MLIsraelCoveringtheWar,00.html |title=Despite Gaza toll, Israeli media focus on Israel |last1=Teibel |first1=Amy |last2=Deitcg |first2=Ian |date=13 January 2009 |agency=Associated Press |access-date=23 February 2010 |publisher=Fox News |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303234626/http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2009Jan13/0%2C4670%2CMLIsraelCoveringtheWar%2C00.html |archive-date=3 March 2016 }}</ref>
=== Denied media access ===
Reporter access to the war zone was limited. During the Gaza raids against Hamas, the Israeli army denied international media access to the conflict zone, against a decision by the Israeli Supreme Court to lift the embargo.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.france24.com/en/20090206-media-kept-bay-gaza-reporters?quicktabs_1=1 |title=Media kept at bay in Gaza |access-date=23 November 2010 |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101123021032/http://www.france24.com/en/20090206-media-kept-bay-gaza-reporters?quicktabs_1=1 |archive-date=23 November 2010}}. AFP, 6 February 2009.</ref> The Foreign Press Association of Israel released a statement saying, "The unprecedented denial of access to Gaza for the world's media amounts to a severe violation of [[press freedom]] and puts the state of Israel in the company of a handful of regimes around the world which regularly keep journalists from doing their jobs."<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/07/world/middleeast/07media.html |date=2009-01-06 |title=Israel Puts Media Clamp on Gaza |first=Ethan |last=Bronner |newspaper=The New York Times}}</ref>
=== Attacks on the media ===
Media facilities in Gaza, both foreign and domestic, came under Israeli fire in the military campaign.<ref name=CPJ>{{cite web |title=Airstrike hits media building in Gaza |date=9 January 2009 |url=http://cpj.org/2009/01/press-under-fire-in-gaza-again.php |access-date=2009-01-11 |publisher=[[Committee to Protect Journalists]]}}</ref> On one occasion a [[BM-21|Grad rocket]] may have been launched from a location near the television studios in the Al-Shuruk tower in Gaza City. Although the Israeli recording of a reporter describing a rocket launch was during the initial aerial bombardment phase the tower was only bombed in the final few days.<ref name="Al-Arabia-Grad">{{cite news |title=Gaza reporter caught on tape confirming Hamas fired rockets near TV offices |author=Yoav Stern |date=2009-01-20 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/gaza-reporter-caught-on-tape-confirming-hamas-fired-rockets-near-tv-offices-1.268513 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> On 29 December the IDF destroyed the facilities and headquarters of [[Al-Aqsa TV]] (though broadcasts continue from elsewhere), and a week later, IDF soldiers entered the building and seized the equipment. The Israelis also hacked into the station's signal and broadcast an animated clip of Hamas' leadership being gunned down. On 5&nbsp;January the IDF bombed the offices of the Hamas-affiliated Al-Risala newsweekly.<ref name=CPJ/> On 9&nbsp;January the IDF hit the Johara tower of Gaza City, which houses more than 20 international news organizations, including Turkish, French, and Iranian outlets.<ref name="maan_20press">{{Cite news |title=Jawwara building, with more than 20 press offices inside, hit by Israeli missiles |date=2009-01-09 |publisher=[[Ma'an News Agency]] |url=http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=34807 |access-date=2009-01-10 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928130544/http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=34807 |archive-date=28 September 2011 }}</ref> The [[IDF Spokesperson's Unit]] said that the building had not been targeted, though it may have sustained damage from a nearby Israeli strike.
On 12 January two Arab journalists from [[Jerusalem]] working for an [[Iran]]ian television station were arrested by [[Israel Police|Israeli Police]] and indicted in the Jerusalem District Court for violating military [[censorship]] protocols. They had reported on the IDF ground offensive hours before they were cleared to do so. The journalists maintained that they merely stated what was already being said in the international media.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/63256/2-arabs-charged-with-defying-idf-censor.html |title=2 Arabs charged with defying IDF censor, 13 January 2009 Tuesday 16:40 |access-date=2014-08-17 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615010601/http://www.turkishweekly.net/news/63256/2-arabs-charged-with-defying-idf-censor.html |archive-date=15 June 2011 }}</ref>
=== New media ===
Media relations also played an important role, with the use of [[new media]] (up to and including [[cyber warfare]]) on the part of both Israel and Hamas.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ward |first=Will |title=Social media and the Gaza conflict |url=http://www.arabmediasociety.com/topics/index.php?t_article=242 |publisher=Arab Media & Society |access-date=19 March 2011 |year=2009 |archive-date=5 April 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110405120425/http://www.arabmediasociety.com/topics/index.php?t_article=242 }}</ref> ''[[Haaretz]]'' reported that Israeli [[Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel|Foreign Minister]] [[Tzipi Livni]] "instructed senior ministry officials to open an aggressive and diplomatic international public relations campaign to gain support for Israel Defense Forces operations in the Gaza Strip". Israeli officials at embassies and consulates worldwide have mounted campaigns in local media, and to that end have recruited people who speak the native language. Israel has also opened an international media centre in [[Sderot]].<ref name="haaretz_israel_PR">{{cite news |last=Ravid |first=Barak |title=Israel to mount emergency international PR effort in wake of Gaza campaign |date=27 December 2008 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/news/israel-to-mount-emergency-international-pr-effort-in-wake-of-gaza-campaign-1.260340 |access-date=27 December 2008}}</ref> To improve Israeli public relations, the [[Immigrant Absorption Minister of Israel|Ministry of Immigrant Absorption]] has recruited 1,000 volunteers with the objective of flooding news websites and blogs that the ministry term as anti-Israeli with pro-Israeli opinions. Volunteers proficient in languages other than Hebrew were particularly sought after.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Hasbara spam alert |author=Silverstein, Richard |date=9 January 2009 |url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/jan/09/israel-foreign-ministry-media |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Latest hasbara weapon: 'Army of bloggers' |author=Jonathan Beck |date=18 January 2009 |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292897417&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001163236/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292897417&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Israel recruits 'army of bloggers' to combat anti-Zionist Web sites |author=Cnaan Liphshiz |date=2009-01-19 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/israel-recruits-army-of-bloggers-to-combat-anti-zionist-web-sites-1.268393 |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Pro-Israel media: Bloggers join media war |url=http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3663679,00.html |date=2009-01-29 |access-date=2009-02-16 |publisher=[[Ynetnews]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090822054118/http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3663679,00.html |archive-date=22 August 2009 }}</ref>
Foreign Press Branch head [[Avital Leibovich]] believes the "new media" is another war zone, stating, "We have to be relevant there." As part of its [[public-relations]] campaign, the Israeli army opened a [[YouTube]] channel "through which it will disseminate footage of precision bombing operations in the Gaza Strip, as well as aid distribution and other footage of interest to the international community".<ref>{{cite news |last=Socol |first=Max |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost/JPArticle/ShowFull&cid=1230456531523 |title=IDF launches YouTube Gaza channel |work=The Jerusalem Post |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001163600/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull&cid=1230456531523 |archive-date=1 October 2011 }}</ref>
==Reactions==
{{Main|International reactions to the Gaza War (2008–09)}}
{{See also|Antisemitic incidents during the Gaza War (2008–09)}}
[[File:2009 Anti Israel Protest Tanzania.JPG|thumb|Protest against the war in [[Dar es Salaam]], Tanzania]]
[[File:Israel peace rally, London Jan 11 2009 P.JPG|thumb|Protest against the war in [[London]], UK]]
While Israel defined its operation as a war against Hamas, Palestinian representatives and individuals, among others, viewed it as a "war on the [[Palestinian people]]".<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/12/29/gaza.israel.strikes/ |date=29 December 2008 |title=Sources: Gaza death toll from Israeli offensive exceeds 375 |publisher=CNN}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4325805/Gaza-phosphorus-casualties-relive-Israels-three-week-war.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/israel/4325805/Gaza-phosphorus-casualties-relive-Israels-three-week-war.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |title=Gaza phosphorus casualties relive Israel's three-week war |date=23 January 2009 |author=Tim Butcher |work=The Daily Telegraph |location=London}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Israel's religious war |author=Paul Woodward |url=http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090323/GLOBALBRIEFING/890200661/1001 |date=23 March 2009 |access-date=2010-02-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141218120219/http://www.thenational.ae/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F20090323%2FGLOBALBRIEFING%2F890200661%2F1001 |archive-date=18 December 2014 }}</ref>
The [[United Nations]] [[United Nations Security Council|Security Council]] issued a statement on 28 December 2008, calling "for an immediate halt to all violence".<ref name="worsnip1">
{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/newsMaps/idUSTRE4BR0H920081228 |title=U.N. Security Council calls for end to Gaza violence |last=Worsnip |first=Patrick |author2=Todd Eastham |date=28 December 2008 |publisher=Reuters |access-date=28 December 2008}}
</ref> The [[Arab League]],<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Foreign-Policy/2009/0106/p01s02-usfp.html|title=A rush to broker peace in Gaza|date=6 January 2009|journal=Christian Science Monitor}}</ref> the [[European Union]] and many nations made similar calls.<ref>
{{Cite news |last=Castle |first=Stephen |author2=Katrin Bennhold |title=Europe Sends Two Missions to Promote a Cease-Fire |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/05/world/europe/05union.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=2009-01-05 |access-date=2010-04-02}}
</ref> On 9&nbsp;January 2009, following an earlier, failed attempt at a ceasefire resolution,<ref name=Reuters>
{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUSL4657519._CH_.2400 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130104140911/http://www.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUSL4657519._CH_.2400 |archive-date=4 January 2013 |title=Israeli tanks, soldiers invade Gaza Strip |publisher=Reuters |date=2009-01-04 |author=Nidal al-Mughrabi |access-date=2009-01-04}}
</ref> the United Nations Security Council passed [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1860|Resolution 1860]] calling for "an immediate, durable and fully respected cease-fire" leading to a full Israeli withdrawal and an end to Gaza arms smuggling, by 14 votes to one abstention (the United States).<ref>
{{Cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/jan/09/gaza-us-security-council-abstention |title=White House 'behind' US volte-face on ceasefire call 9 January 2009 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |first=Julian |last=Borger |date=2009-01-09 |access-date=2010-04-02}}
</ref> The resolution was ignored by both Israel and Hamas.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7820027.stm |title=UN ceasefire call goes unheeded |work=BBC News |date=2009-01-09 |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref> One week later, on January 16, 2009, the [[United Nations General Assembly|General Assembly]] passed [[United Nations General Assembly Resolution ES-10/18]], which aimed to enforce the earlier passed [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1860|UN Security Council Resolution 1860]]. The resolution called for an immediate [[ceasefire]], withdrawal of Israeli forces from [[Gaza Strip|Gaza]], and unimpeded humanitarian aid distribution, and was subsequently adopted with overwhelming support (142–3) and 9 abstentions.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-10-26 |title=CALLING FOR IMMEDIATE GAZA CEASEFIRE, AS EMERGENCY SESSION CONCLUDES |url=https://press.un.org/en/2009/ga10809.doc.htm |access-date=2023-10-28 |website=news.un.org |language=en}}</ref>
[[File:International reaction to the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict.png|thumb|upright=1.35|Governmental proclamations regarding the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict {{legend|#000000|Israel-Gaza}} {{legend|#0F37DB|Endorsed the Israeli position/defined Israel's action as falling within its right to defense.}}{{legend|#918BFE|Condemned Hamas action only.}}{{legend|#9ADD84|Called for an end to hostilities, and condemned neither/both belligerents.}}{{legend|#FF7777|Condemned Israeli action only.}}{{legend|#F20000|Endorsed the Hamas position/defined Hamas' actions as falling within its [[right to resist|right of resistance]].}}{{legend|#DCDCDC|No official statement on the conflict.}}{{Citation needed|date=March 2013}}]]
Many governments expressed positions on the conflict, most condemning both belligerents, or neither of them. Thirty-four states, mostly members of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, condemned Israel's attacks exclusively. Three of them expressed support for Hamas' operations or defined them as falling within its right of resistance. Nineteen states, mostly members of the [[European Union]], condemned Hamas' attacks exclusively. Thirteen of them expressed support for Israel's operations or defined them as falling within Israel's right to self-defense.
[[Bolivia]], [[Jordan]], [[Mauritania]] and [[Venezuela]] significantly downscaled or severed their relations with Israel in protest of the offensive.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/05/content_10603389.htm |title=PM: Jordan reserves rights to reconsider relations with states, especially Israel |publisher=Xinhua |date=2009-01-05 |access-date=2010-03-24 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121023123752/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2009-01/05/content_10603389.htm |archive-date=23 October 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2009/01/2009116151135307776.html |title=Qatar, Mauritania cut Israel ties |publisher=Al Jazeera |access-date=2010-03-24}}</ref>
The conflict saw worldwide civilian demonstrations for and against both sides.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20090121132203/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5h9KysGfr_McbPBkSWsjXJzvto83A "Major cities stage fresh protests over Gaza"], AFP 11-01-2009 </ref>
The conflict triggered a wave of [[Antisemitic incidents during the Gaza War|reprisal attacks]] against Jewish targets in Europe and elsewhere.<ref>Philippe Naughton, [http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article5459435.ece "Gaza conflict fuels anti-Semitic attacks across Europe"]{{dead link|date=September 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}, Times Online 06-01-2009{{subscription required}}</ref> The worldwide number of recorded [[antisemitism|antisemitic]] incidents during the conflict more than tripled the number of such incidents in the same period of the previous year, marking a two-decade high.<ref name=AS_high>{{cite news |author=Etgar Lefkowits |url=http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232643745524&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |title=Highest anti-Semitism rates in 2 decades |newspaper=[[The Jerusalem Post]] |date=25 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111001163322/http://fr.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232643745524&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull |archive-date=1 October 2011}}</ref>
The British government reviewed its export licenses to Israel for violations of EU and national arms export control laws and revoked five export licenses for replacement parts and other equipment for [[Saar 4.5 class missile boat|Sa'ar 4.5]] missile boats used by Israel because they were used in the Gaza offensive, although 16 export licenses for other British defense items to Israel were approved.<ref>{{cite news |title=U.K.: We revoked Israel arms licenses, but it's no embargo |author=Barak Ravid |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/u-k-we-revoked-israel-arms-licenses-but-it-s-no-embargo-1.279872 |newspaper=Haaretz |date=13 July 2009 |access-date=9 April 2012}}</ref>
The conflict has been called the Gaza Massacre ({{langx|ar|مجزرة غزة}}) in the Arab world.<ref>{{Cite journal |journal=Psychoanalytic Dialogues |publisher=Routeldge |last=Suchet |first=Melanie |title=Face to Face |volume=20 |issue=2 |date=March 2010 |pages=158–71, [167] |doi=10.1080/10481881003716248|s2cid=219727540 }}</ref><ref>Cohen, Lauren. [http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/article82673.ece Achmat weighs in on Israeli 'war architect'] ''[[Sunday Times (South Africa)|Sunday Times]]''. 26 July 2009. Retrieved 30 October 2009. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008232101/http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/article82673.ece |date=8 October 2011 }}</ref><ref>May, Jackie. [http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/article56121.ece Seeking the brutal truth] [[Sunday Times (South Africa)|Sunday Times]]. 1 September 2009 {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008232419/http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/article56121.ece |date=8 October 2011 }}</ref> [[Khaled Mashal]], Hamas' leader in [[Damascus]] called for suicide bombings. [[Ismail Haniyeh]], [[Governance of the Gaza Strip|Prime Minister]] of the Hamas government in Gaza, said: "Palestine has never witnessed an uglier massacre."<ref name="Hamas massacare">[http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Israeli-Airstrikes-On-Gaza-Hamas-Leader-Ismail-Haniyeh-Condemns-Ugliest-Massacre/Article/200812415194411 "Hamas Condemns Gaza 'Massacre'"]. News.sky.com. Retrieved on 2011-06-18. {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090207043033/http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/World-News/Israeli-Airstrikes-On-Gaza-Hamas-Leader-Ismail-Haniyeh-Condemns-Ugliest-Massacre/Article/200812415194411 |date=7 February 2009 }}</ref>
On 28 December 2008, a Palestinian laborer working in the [[Israeli settlement]] of [[Modi'in Illit]] struck his supervisor on the head with a sledgehammer, stabbed and injured four civilians, and beat up several others. He was shot and severely wounded by an emergency response team member as he attempted to flee. His actions were suspected of being a reprisal for Israel's attack. The worker had been employed in the city for about 10 years with no previous trouble, but had spoken out against the war shortly before his rampage.<ref>{{cite news |title=Palestinian stabs 4 in Modi'in Illit |author=Judy Siegel-Itzkovich |author2=Etgar Lefkovits |url=http://www.jpost.com/Israel/Article.aspx?id=126688 |newspaper=The Jerusalem Post |date=29 December 2008 |access-date=6 June 2012}}</ref>
===Reactions in Israel===
[[File:TAU Demo.jpg|thumb|[[Tel-Aviv University]] students demonstrating in support for operation "Cast Lead" and the citizens of [[Southern District (Israel)|south Israel]]]]
The war provoked mixed reactions inside Israel, with the Jewish majority largely supporting it, and the Arab minority mostly opposing it. A poll taken on 8 January 2009 showed that 91% of the Jewish public supported the war, and 4% opposed it, while a separate poll conducted 4–6 January showed a 94% approval of the war among Jews and 85% disapproval among [[Israeli Arabs]].<ref name="INSS">[http://www.inss.org.il/publications.php?cat=21&incat=&read=2634 המכון למחקרי ביטחון לאומי > Publications > Periodicals]. The Institute for National Security Studies. Retrieved on 2011-06-18. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720010439/http://www.inss.org.il/publications.php?cat=21&incat=&read=2634 |date=20 July 2011 }}</ref> Most right-wing opposition parties including [[Likud]], [[National Union (Israel)|National Union]], [[National Religious Party]] and [[Yisrael Beiteinu]] opposed the ceasefire and urged to continue the operation until [[Hamas]] is fully defeated.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20160303223114/http://news.nana10.co.il/Article/?ArticleID=610288 {{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}</ref>{{Bare URL inline|date=August 2024}}
During the war, Arab protests took place across the country. Within hours of the war's start, the Higher Follow-Up Committee for Arab citizens of Israel met in [[Nazareth]], and declared a "day of wrath and mourning for the martyrs among our compatriots in the Gaza Strip", and a general strike for the following day. Arab demonstrations took place across the country almost every day during the offensive, and were described as the "largest Arab demonstrations in Israel's history". Arab parties and parliamentarians in the [[Knesset]] also opposed the offensive.<ref>[http://www.palestine-studies.org/files/pdf/jps/10332.pdf "The Palestinians in Israel and Operation Cast Lead: A view from Haifa"]. palestine-studies.org {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101011010948/http://www.palestine-studies.org/files/pdf/jps/10332.pdf |date=11 October 2010 }}</ref><ref name="Massacre Claims 3">[http://english.aljazeera.net/news/europe/2009/01/2009110134856498809.html "Mass protests held against Gaza war"]. Al Jazeera (2009-01-11). Retrieved on 2011-06-18.</ref> In [[Jerusalem]], Arabs held violent demonstrations, which included rock-throwing, [[arson]], and the vandalization of Jewish graves. Police arrested dozens of rioters. At the [[University of Haifa]], [[Tel Aviv University]] and the [[Hebrew University of Jerusalem]], Jewish leftist and Arab students staged anti-war demonstrations, which were met with pro-war counter-demonstrations. Some confrontations occurred despite police keeping protesters apart.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/129097 |title=Anti-IDF Protests in Israel. Israel National News |publisher=Arutz Sheva |date=2008-12-29 |access-date=2014-08-17}}</ref>
The legal rights agency [[Adalah (legal center)|Adalah]] produced a report highly critical of the Israeli police and court system's response to the opposition to Operation Cast Lead. The report said that the Israeli authorities had shown a lack of tolerance for protests, and had damaged the freedom of expression of those opposing the attacks on Gaza. The report said that the actions showed the lessons of the [[Or Commission]] had not been learned. The Israeli Ministry of Justice responded that the risk to human life and public welfare had justified their actions.<ref>{{Cite news |title=How Israel silenced its Gaza war protesters |newspaper=Haaretz |author=Akiva Eldar |date=22 September 2009 |url=http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/features/how-israel-silenced-its-gaza-war-protesters-1.7477}}</ref>
The term [[Sderot cinema]] has been coined for the tradition of residents in Sderot sitting to view the bombardment of the Gaza strip.
==See also==
{{Portalbar|Palestine|Israel}}
{{columns-list|
* [[List of invasions in the 21st century]]
* [[2008 Israel–Hamas ceasefire]]
* [[Civil defense in Israel]]
* [[Effects of the Gaza War (2008–09)]]
* [[Gaza Strip smuggling tunnels]]
* [[Iran–Israel proxy conflict]]
* [[Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades]] (Hamas' military wing)
* [[List of modern conflicts in the Middle East]]
* [[Military equipment of Israel]]
* [[Palestinian domestic weapons production]]
* [[Palestinian political violence]]
* [[R v Saibene]]
* [[Roof knocking]]
* [[Shurrab family]]
* [[Tahdiya]]
}}
==References==
=== Notes ===
{{Reflist|group=fn}}
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist}}
=== Sources ===
{{refbegin|35em}}
* {{cite web
| title=Fatalities during Operation Cast Lead
| website=B'Tselem
| url=https://www.btselem.org/statistics/fatalities/during-cast-lead/by-date-of-event
| ref={{sfnref | B'Tselem}}
| access-date=November 24, 2020
}}
* {{cite web
| url=http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/PressR/English/2008/36-2009.html
| title=Confirmed figures reveal the true extent of the destruction inflicted upon the Gaza Strip; Israel's offensive resulted in 1,417 dead, including 926 civilians, 255 police officers, and 236 fighters
| access-date=19 March 2009
| url-status=unfit
| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090612193512/http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/PressR/English/2008/36-2009.html
| archive-date=12 June 2009
| publisher = Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
| date = March 12, 2009
| ref={{sfnref | PCHR | 2009}}
}}
* {{cite web
| last=Lappin | first=Yaakov
| title=IDF releases Cast Lead casualty numbers
| website=The Jerusalem Post
| date=March 26, 2009
| url=https://www.jpost.com/israel/idf-releases-cast-lead-casualty-numbers
| access-date=November 24, 2020
}}
{{refend}}
==Further reading==
*{{cite book |last=Filiu |first=Jean-Pierre |author-link=Jean-Pierre Filiu |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4fhzBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA207 |title=Gaza: A History |date=2014 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=9780190201890}}
* {{Cite book |author=Gerald Steinberg and Anne Herzberg |title=The Goldstone Report 'Reconsidered': A Critical Analysis |year=2011 |publisher=NGO Monitor/Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs |isbn=978-965-91793-0-5}}
==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
{{Commons category|2008-09 Gaza War}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20090107095002/http://english.aljazeera.net/focus/war_on_gaza/ Aljazeera coverage]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7812136.stm Gaza crisis: key maps and timeline], BBC News.
* [http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/2008/news/gaza/ CNN coverage].
* {{Guardiantopic|world/series/gaza-war-crimes-investigation|Gaza war crimes investigation}}
* [[Gabi Siboni]], [http://www.inss.org.il/uploadimages/Import/(FILE)1272779230.pdf "From the Second Intifada through the Second Lebanon War to Operation Cast Lead: Puzzle Pieces of a Single Campaign"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820030032/http://www.inss.org.il/uploadimages/Import/(FILE)1272779230.pdf |date=20 August 2016 }}, ''[[Institute for National Security Studies (Israel)|Military and Strategic Affairs]]'', Volume 1, No. 1, April 2009.
* [[Gabi Siboni]], [http://www.inss.org.il/uploadImages/systemFiles/Operations%20Cast%20Lead,%20Pillar%20of%20Defense,%20and%20Protective%20Edge_%20A%20Comparative%20Review.pdf "Operations Cast Lead, Pillar of Defense, and Protective Edge: A Comparative Review"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820033603/http://www.inss.org.il/uploadImages/systemFiles/Operations%20Cast%20Lead,%20Pillar%20of%20Defense,%20and%20Protective%20Edge_%20A%20Comparative%20Review.pdf |date=20 August 2016 }}, a chapter inside ''The Lessons of Operation Protective Edge'', eds. Anat Kurz and Shlomo Brom, [[Institute for National Security Studies (Israel)|INSS]], 2014.
{{Gaza War (2008–2009)}}
{{Israel–Gaza conflict}}
{{Israeli-Palestinian conflict}}
{{Arab–Israeli armed engagements}}
{{Israeli wars}}
{{Iran–Israel proxy conflict}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaza War, 2008}}
[[Category:Gaza War (2008–2009)| ]]
[[Category:2008 in Israel]]
[[Category:2009 in Israel]]
[[Category:Counterterrorism in Israel]]
[[Category:Invasions by Israel]]
[[Category:Iran–Israel proxy conflict]]
[[Category:Israeli attacks against the Gaza Strip|2008]]
[[Category:Wars involving Israel]]
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Ehud Olmert]]
[[Category:2008 in the Gaza Strip]]
[[Category:2009 in the Gaza Strip]]