No Major Israeli Response To Suicide Bombing Expected

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will not order any significant military response to Monday’s suicide bombing in Eilat that left three Israelis dead. The Israeli political echelon did allow the army to bomb a tunnel near the Karni crossing point between Israel and the Gaza Strip that is used for smuggling. An army statement said the tunnel was to be used to transport terrorists into Israel to carry out attacks against civilians. But since the cease-fire between Israel and Palestinian factions went into effect in November, all such raids by the military require direct approval from the politicians. Because Israel has withheld virtually all response to provocations during the cease-fire and the frequency of firing Qassam rockets from the Gaza Strip into Israel is waning, analysts at The Media Line explain that it is very unlikely that Olmert would risk international condemnation for anything less than a catastrophic attack.