Israel sent aircraft, tanks and ground troops to pummel the Gaza Strip on Friday, killing one Palestinian and injuring 17, a day after Palestinian militants killed an Israeli civilian in a mortar attack. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert warned that Israel was close to abandoning efforts to bring a truce to the volatile area and was seriously considering a large-scale incursion. "According to the information we have now, the pendulum is much closer to a decision on a harsh operation," Olmert said soon after returning from a brief visit to the U.S.Egypt has been trying for months to mediate a cease-fire between Israel and the Gaza's Islamic militant Hamas rulers. But both sides have set tough conditions for a truce, and Israeli leaders are under pressure at home to respond militarily because the weapons in the hands of Gaza militants have become more deadly. Four Israelis have been killed this year in rocket and mortar attacks, out of a total of 16 killed since 2004.
Israel has been reluctant to launch a large-scale incursion for fear it would result in the deaths of a large number of Israeli soldiers and Palestinian civilians. Instead, it has been relying on pinpoint airstrikes and ground raids on militant rocket and mortar operations that have severely disrupted life in southern Israel.
One militant was killed and two were injured early Friday in a gunbattle that erupted after Israeli tanks and bulldozers crossed into central Gaza. The military said its forces entered to prevent rocket launches. Fifteen Palestinians — some Hamas militants, others
Hamas also fired four rockets toward Israel, the group said. One landed in the rocket-scarred town of Sderot, damaging six cars, the military said.