Israel powerful, army trained for such attacks, say defence experts

NEW DELHI: Weighing in on the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict, defence experts have said that Israel is a powerful country and its army is trained to deal with such attacks.

The experts were also of the opinion that Israel is capable of easily eliminating Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah.

International Affairs and Defence Expert, Major General (Retd) Sanjay Soi told ANI that Hamas firing as many as 5,000 rockets at Israel from the Gaza Strip definitely must have taken Israel by surprise.

"This was an intelligence failure on Israel's part. The death toll has soared and Israel is witnessing such a situation after a long time. Israel has a very strong intelligence system.

They take a productive stand, Israel does not leave its land and cannot ever bear casualties," Maj Gen (Retd) Soi added. He also said, "Attacks from every direction are a big challenge for Israel but Israel's army is trained. They are prepared for such attacks. Israel has recovered very quickly. The counter-attack will be very dangerous."

When asked about India's stand on this conflict, the defence expert said that India's terms with the Middle East have been very good. "But the way the attack was done...targeting especially civilian areas...India has always been opposed to terrorism. So, India has strongly condemned and has said that we stand with Israel at this time," he added.

Meanwhile, another defence expert, Qamar Agha, said, "Israel has that capability to easily destroy such militant organisations alone. They will take revenge. The operation will take a long time." Mahesh Sachdeva, a former Indian diplomat termed the situation in Israel very worrisome.

"The attack has halted the ongoing internal conflict of Israel. The judiciary overhaul, which seeks to curb the judiciary's influence over lawmaking and public policy is facing a backlash by the general public...Now the Supreme Court is discussing how to protect its own judicial powers. The attack came at such a time," Sachdeva told ANI.

He also underscored that Israel is a powerful country and will eventually push back the militant organisations and will once again secure its border.

"It is very much possible that Israel does military intervention, send its army to Gaza and if this happens, more violence will erupt and then it will be difficult to say anything about the endgame," Sachdeva added.

The death toll in Israel since Hamas began its attack has surpassed 700 people, according to officials, The Times of Israel reported citing Hebrew media outlets. Israeli forces continue to battle with Hamas terrorists as they clear out communities along the border.

According to the Israel Health Ministry, more than 2,243 people have been injured and brought to hospitals in Israel amid the ongoing situation, The Times of Israel reported.