Israel rejects truce call, attacks Gaza

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GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel resisted mounting international pressure Wednesday to suspend its devastating air offensive against militants in Hamas-ruled Gaza, sending more troops and tanks to the border as signs of an impending ground invasion multiplied.

A long column of tanks and other army vehicles, two and three abreast, was strung out along an access road to Gaza. Dozens of tanks were parked in a rain-sodden field on the frontier.

Commanders were moving forward with preparations for a possible ground assault, said an Israeli defense official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the information.

Earlier this week the government approved the callup of more than 9,000 reserves soldiers.

Heavy cloud cover that could encumber ground forces was expected to lift Thursday.

See related story:Israel pressed to end Gaza attacks

The diplomatic action was set in motion by Israel’s aerial campaign, now in its fifth day, aimed at snuffing out militant rocket barrages that are striking ominously close to the Israeli heartland.

Gaza officials put the death toll at more than 390 dead and 1,600 wounded. Hamas says some 200 uniformed members of Hamas security forces have been killed, and the U.N. says at least 60 Palestinian civilians have died. Israeli defense officials say Hamas’ top military and political leaders have gone underground and have not been touched.

Four Israelis have been killed by militant rocket fire, including three civilians.

The chief of Israel’s internal security services, Yuval Diskin, told Cabinet ministers Wednesday that Hamas’ ability to rule had been “badly impaired.”

Weapons development facilities have been “completely wiped out” and a network of smuggling tunnels that has been Hamas’ lifeline has been badly damaged, a participant in the meeting quoted Diskin as saying. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting was closed to the media.

The bombing onslaught has touched off protests across the Islamic world. In Iran on Wednesday, fundamentalist students asked their government to authorize volunteer suicide bombers to attack Israel. The Tehran government had no immediate response.

On Tuesday, France urged Israel to halt its operation for 48 hours. Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert discussed the idea with his defense and foreign ministers overnight, but the trio decided to pursue the punishing aerial campaign.

Calls for an immediate cease-fire have also come from the U.S., the European Union, the U.N. and Russia. President George W. Bush and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice both called leaders in the Middle East on Tuesday to press for a durable solution.

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