JERUSALEM -- When a Palestinian rocket hit a training base in Israel on Sept. 11, sending 67 soldiers to the hospital, many in Israel, in Gaza, and beyond thought it would be the event that would launch a full-scale Israeli invasion of Gaza to put an end to the rocket attacks once and for all. Hamas quickly began evacuating key locations, and many in Gaza began stocking up on food and water, fearing a massive Israeli response. Instead, what they heard was thundering demands for action from the Israeli right, followed by a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert that a major operation in Gaza would not come, because it would play right into Hamas' hands. Anger had nearly boiled over the week before, when a rocket smashed next to a day care center on the second day of the Israeli school year, in what Palestinian militants called a back-to-school present for Israeli children.
Why Israel Won’t Invade Gaza — for Now
