Merkava tanks are lined up in the desert. Low-flying Apache and Cobra helicopter gunships swirl up plumes of sand and dust that settle on turrets pointed squarely at the border. Troops are also settled in a pattern of briefings and combat drills – all while patiently waiting for that paramount order.
Almost two weeks after the Hamas carnage which resulted in 1,400 deaths and 200 hostages being seized, Israel’s declaration that the war will be taken to Gaza – by land, air and sea – remains just that. The question privately asked among soldiers and officers: “If not now, when?”
