Operation Cast Lead was an Israeli military operation undertaken from 27 December 2008 to 18 January 2009 when the Israel Defense Forces invaded the Gaza Strip to retaliate against Hamas rocket attacks on southern Israel. The brief war led to a decrease in Palestinian rocket attacks, but the rivalry between Israel and Hamas led to Operation Pillar of Defense in 2012.
Background[]
Hamas was founded in 1985 with the goal of creating an Islamic theocracy in Palestine and destroying the state of Israel, and it received extensive funding and armament from Ba'athist Iraq and the Iranian government. Hamas established itself as a major threat to the Israeli government during the Second Intifada, when it pioneered the use of suicide bombings as a terrorist tactic. In June 2007, Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip from Fatah, the leading party of the Palestine Liberation Organization, implementing Taliban-esque sharia law and using the strip as a base for long-range rocket launchers which could target Israeli cities. From 2005 to 2007, Hamas fired 2,700 Qassam rockets into Israel, killing 4 civilians and wounding 75 others. On 19 June 2008, Egypt negotiated a six-month ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, but, on 4 November 2008, Israel broke the ceasefire by launching a raid into the Gaza Strip to destroy a new Hamas tunnel complex which threatened to allow for Hamas fighters to be smuggled into Israel. Clashes then resumed along the Gaza border, leaving 11 militants dead, and the rocket attacks resumed at the same level as earlier. On 14 December, Hamas stated that it would be open to renewing the ceasefire if Israel would open up the Gaza border crossings and pledge to halt their attacks. On 24 December 2008, 87 Palestinian rockets hit the Negev, provoking the Israeli government into mounting a retaliatory invasion of Gaza.
War[]
Bombardment of Gaza[]
At 11:30 AM on 27 December 2008, a wave of Israeli Air Force F-16 jets struck 100 preplanned targets in the Gaza Strip in just 220 seconds, and a second wave followed 30 minutes later, targeting Hamas headquarters, government offices, and 24 police stations. An Israeli UAV strike on the police headquarters killed 140 Hamas members, including police chief Tawfik Jaber and dozens of police cadets. A total of 230 Palestinians were killed and over 700 injured on the first day of airstrikes. The IDF also targeted the homes of the Hamas commanders, weakening their command infrastructure by eliminating key leaders such as Nizar Rayan, Abu Zakaria al-Jamal, Jamal Mamduch, Saleh Abu Sharkh, Said Seyam, and Mahmoud Abu Watfah. By 3 January 2009, 400 Palestinians had been killed in airstrikes, with 25% of them being civilians. Meanwhile, the Israeli Navy bombarded Hamas rocket launchers and outposts and blockaded the Gaza Strip.
Ground assault[]
On 3 January 2009, after a massive artillery barrage, 20,000 IDF troops invaded the Gaza Strip with the goal of controlling open areas and encircling towns and refugee camps under Hamas control. Hamas booby-trapped mosques and a third of Gaza's houses, and they also prepared IEDs to ambush the Israeli soldiers. The Hamas fighters also attempted to launch hit-and-run attacks from tunnels, and several would-be suicide bombers attempted to charge at Israeli soldiers, only to be gunned down before they could detonate their vests. On 4 January, Israeli troops encircled Gaza City, and Israeli tanks and troops seized large parts of the Gaza Strip. In January and February 2009, as the conflict raged in Gaza, Israel bombed a convoy of 17 trucks in Sudan as they attempted to smuggle Fajr-3 rockets to the Gaza Strip; 39 were killed, including several Iranian IRGC operatives. On 13 January, Israeli forces in the Gaza strip advanced on the Hamas security headquarters in the al-Karramah neighborhood of Gaza City, and, in the Tel al-Hawa district, the Israelis faced fierce Hamas resistance. On 15 January 2009, the Israelis began an intense bombardment of the city, damaging the al-Quds hospital; at the same time, the Palestinian terrorist groups launched rockets at Israeli towns and cities in an attempt to distract the Israeli military. On 18 January 2009, amid rising international criticism, Israel agreed to a unilateral ceasefire with Gaza, and Hamas announced a one-week ceasefire twelve hours later. Israel completed its withdrawal from Gaza on 21 January 2009, ending Operation Cast Lead and weakening the Palestinian militant groups' capabilities to launch further rocket attacks.