| The Israeli military has prepared for the prospect of a sharp reduction in combat operations in the Gaza Strip amid plans to withdraw from the area in September 2005. Senior commanders said the General Staff has assessed that the government of Prime Minister Ariel Sharon would restrain the military from any major operation in the Gaza Strip during and after the pullout and evacuation of Israelis. The commanders said the military brass was planning a defensive posture similar to that adopted along Israel's border with Lebanon. "Even after disengagement, we will be able to enter Gaza anytime we like," a senior commander said. "But who will let us do that?" As a result, the General Staff has drafted a combat doctrine meant to reduce Palestinian infiltration along the Israeli-Gaza border without the need for actual engagement. The commanders said the doctrine would be based on the deployment of unmanned platforms to monitor the 50-kilometer border. |