After a week of air strikes, Israel moved into Gaza after dark tonight, as Israeli officials promised a "lengthy operation:"
Heavy gun battles were reported as troops crossed the border into Gaza. Local TV networks broadcast images of troops marching into Gaza after dark.
"We have many many targets," Maj. Avital Leibovich told CNN. "To my estimation, it will be a lengthy operation." She said the goal of the operation was to take over the areas used by militants to launch rockets against Israel.
"The civilians are not our target, only militants, Hamas militants," she said.
The National Security Cabinet approved the call-up of thousands of reserve soldiers, to enable the expansion of Operation Cast Lead, but it's not clear how deep the ground incursion will go into Gaza or how long it will last.
Defense Minister Ehud Barak made a statement shortly after fighting started, and referred to the goal of the ground troops broadly - "to hit Hamas hard"- acknowledging that the operation poses dangers to soldiers:
"We know there will be dangers, difficulties and victims… It must be said that the ground operation entails dangers to the lives of soldiers," Barak said in a press conference early Saturday night.
Jerusalem Post sources report dozens of Hamas fighters being killed in firefights so far.
Update: More from Barak's statement:
"The campaign won't be easy and it won't be short," he said, emphasizing that the operation entails the risking of Israeli lives. "I know well the dangers that come with an offensive, and what the heavy price will be."
"I don't want to fool anyone. The residents of southern Israel will also undergo some tough times," Barak continued.
The defense minister also addressed the possibility of an escalation in violence in northern Israel, along the border with Lebanon. "We hope that the northern front will remain calm, but we are prepared for any possibility," he said.
