Word: weakenings
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...envoy is suspicious: Mitchell is likely to do something the Bush Administration rarely did - ask for Israeli concessions, however minor. The Mitchell appointment and the Al Arabiya interview are of a piece: respect will be paid to Muslims by the Obama Administration. The long-term goal is to weaken the regional tyrants and extremists by depriving them of the Great Satan caricature - the first step toward a more plausible U.S. policy in the area, the threshold necessary for creative negotiating to begin...
...long assumed that Hamas wanted a ground invasion so it could land some blows on the Israeli military in order to claim a propaganda victory once the Israelis inevitably withdrew. Still, by entering Gaza on Saturday, the Israelis calculated that they could draw Hamas into clashes that would substantially weaken the organization, even if Israel suffered some casualties. But despite the ferocity of the fighting that rages in some parts of Gaza, there are indications that Hamas is keeping many of its best fighters out of the direct path of the advancing Israelis. Israeli military officials have noted that resistance...
...already discussing ways it can push for peace while still maintaining the appearance of defiance. Israeli officials reportedly say that the ground offensive will last a "few weeks" and that the two sides will then negotiate a new cease-fire. Israel wants to use that time to severely weaken Hamas' military capabilities. A day into the ground campaign, officials feel confident that they're doing just that. A message sent by the Israeli chief of staff to his troops just before the ground offensive began captures the mood well. "Our enemies were mistaken when they believed that we were weak...
...itself the unattainable goal of eliminating the military capability of Hizballah, this time Barak and Olmert have made clear that their objective is not to wipe out Hamas, but instead to force the radical group to accept a durable cease-fire on Israel's terms. While they hope to weaken Hamas, Israel's leaders are aware that a military campaign is unlikely to destroy the organization that remains the most popular political force in Gaza. Any attempt to do so would require not only a massive invasion of all of Gaza, but also an open-ended reoccupation of a hostile...
...ground attack may be found in the goals of the Israeli operation and the time available. Israel has made clear from the outset that its objective is to attain a cease-fire on its own terms that will last at least a year or two. While they hope to weaken Hamas, Israel's leaders are aware that they're unlikely to destroy the organization, and among their primary concerns is to avoid getting dragged into a quagmire. Destroying Hamas would take a massive invasion of all of Gaza, but it would also require an open-ended reoccupation of the territory...