Media: Israel military chief favors Gaza offensive (AP)

JERUSALEM ? Israeli media report the nation's top military commander as saying he favors a major offensive in Gaza because of rocket attacks.

The reports Tuesday say Lt. Gen. Benny Gantz told a parliamentary committee about the need to "embark on a significant offensive in Gaza." The reports quoted participants in the committee meeting who spoke on condition of anonymity because the session was closed.

Gantz said an Israeli airstrike that killed five militants in Gaza in late October set back the Islamic Jihad militant group's rocket operations. That came during a sudden spike in rocket attacks that disrupted life in Israel's south.

The military chief said, "We cannot keep having round after round (of violence) in Gaza."

Israel went to war in Gaza in late 2008 following years of rocket fire.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111115/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinians

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