Special report: Palestine-Israel Relations  

Palestinians carry the body of a Hamas gunman during his funeral in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip Nov. 13, 2008.(Xinhua/Reuters Photo) Photo Gallery>>>

  

    GAZA, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- The unsigned six-month truce between Israel and Hamas-led Gaza armed groups, brokered by Egypt on June 19, is becoming more and more fragile following a wave of violence that killed 13 militants in the Gaza Strip within the last ten days.

    Palestinian analysts, however, believe that the aim of the recent wave of fighting between Israel and Hamas following four months of complete calm, is to test each other's power in case the truce, which expires on Dec. 19, was not extended.

    "I believe that both Hamas and Israel are interested in keeping the truce in the Gaza Strip because the last four months of clam had served both Hamas and Israel's interests," said Jamal Abu Halima, a Palestinian academic from Gaza.

    On Nov. 5, an Israeli army force discovered a tunnel between southeastern Gaza Strip and Israel and several armored vehicles rolled about 500 meters into the Hamas-controlled territories and destroyed the tunnel.

    Israel denounced that Gaza militants were planning to use the tunnel to infiltrate into Israel to carry out armed attacks and seize more Israeli soldiers as jetton to free the Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

    Six Hamas militants were killed during the fighting as Hamas' armed wing responded to the killing of its militants and fired dozens of homemade rockets at southern Israel.

    It was not only Hamas that responded to the Israeli incursions and air strikes, different armed groups, mainly Islamic Jihad and left wing groups which always opposed a truce with Israel, considered it an opportunity to resume their attacks.

    On Friday, Hamas even fired a new kind of medium-range Russian-made rockets at the costal city of Ashkelon in southern Israel. Anaged Israeli woman was injured.

    Abu Halima held that the Israelis, who live to the north of the Gaza Strip had enjoyed the four-month calm, "found out that a truce with Gaza militants would make their lives more calm and normal instead of hiding into shelters and live in fear."

    "At the same time, Hamas is also interested in renewing the truce because it serves its interests to keep ruling the Gaza Strip and exert more pressure on (Palestinian) President Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah movement to accept Hamas' conditions for the reconciliation," said the Palestinian academic.

    Salman Mohamed, a Palestinian analyst, also echoed the point of view, saying that "each side says in the media that the truce hasn't collapsed yet, but what is obvious on the ground is that both Gaza militant groups and the Israeli army are checking each other's power and the fighting is still going on."

    He said that "if we pay attention to the political statements of both Hamas and Israel leaders, we would find out that both are not interested in ending the truce, at least before the Israel's general elections due in February next year.

    He added that if the truce collapses, "this means that Hamas' rule in Gaza would be threatened and Israel would be obliged to carry out a large-scale military operation that would end Hamas' reign and change the situation in the Palestinian territories, which serves President Abbas' interests."

    Israel is prone to keep the truce going on at least in the coming three or four months "in order to prepare a calm atmosphere for the Israeli residents living in southern Israel, and also not to affect the results of the elections," according to Mohamed.

    Following Friday's rocket attacks on Ashkelon, the Israeli cabinet has finally decided not to resort to a military operation against Hamas in Gaza. The decision stirred severe arguments among the Israeli political and security leaders.

    "The situation between Israel and the Palestinians is more complicated than ever before. The peace talks are stalled, the Palestinian internal situation is split and the whole region is on the verge of explosion," said Mohamed.

    Both Abbas, who rules the West Bank, and Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, are in real political crises, but "Israel is the important player in this game that any action it takes would either serve the interest of Abbas or Hamas," added the Palestinian analyst.