The Lebanese newspaper Al-Akhbar claims that the US has given Israel a green light for a massive operation in Gaza.
The newspaper quoted several unnamed diplomats who stated that Defence Minister Ehud Barak had presented American officials with overwhelming evidence of the increasing armament of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad organizations in the Gaza strip.
The paper also stated that Prime Minister Olmert had met several times with Defence Minister Barak to discuss the issue and that Israel was hesitant to reinvade Gaza due to the possible ramifications in Israel's relationship with the Palestinian Authority.
